How can a typical outdoor brand, that once supported expeditions in the Himalayas, become one of the most sought-after fashion brands in the world? It's been nearly seventy years since René Ramillon created Moncler. Today, it's a brand that conquers the runways, winter ski resorts, and city streets.
Moncler jackets are recognizable almost everywhere in the world. They are willingly worn in Europe, where the brand's headquarters is located, but they can often be seen on the streets of major Asian cities and the US fashion capital, New York. What characterizes the Moncler brand? First and foremost, it's their down winter jackets, which often stand out with their bold color and cut, significantly deviating from standard ski jackets or outdoor clothing. Moncler has a strong attachment to the mountains in its DNA, but for the past two decades, it has strongly focused on fashion design and conquest of the most important fashion weeks.
What's the story behind the famous Moncler winter jackets? Few people know that when René Ramillon founded the Moncler brand in 1952, he intended to create a purely sporty brand, which grew out of the need to support winter alpinism and Himalayan mountaineering. The brand was created in one of the Alpine towns, located in a picturesque corner of France. The Alpine region fostered the emergence of clothing that climbers and tourists enjoying the winter aura of the most beautiful mountains in Europe would be the recipients of.
Over time, however, Moncler jackets reached higher and higher peaks, and René Ramillon made sure that technology and design were ahead of their time. Thanks to this, the first ascent of the world's second highest peak, K2, took place in a Moncler jacket, which only confirmed this brand's place among the most professional sports and outdoor brands.
Over the next decades, Moncler winter jackets conquered more Himalayan peaks, becoming part of the equipment of other organized expeditions and the sponsor of the Winter Olympics in Grenoble in 1968. So how is it possible that Moncler, a brand so deeply rooted in winter sports, is now seen as a favorite brand of fashionistas and fashion critics?
Moncler Jackets – from world peaks to fashion runways
Everything changed at the beginning of the 21st century when Moncler was on the verge of bankruptcy. That's when the brand was taken over by an Italian investor, Remo Ruffini. He decided to completely change the direction the French brand was heading, changing its DNA, also in terms of the region with which it would later be associated. Today, Italy is the place where the entire Moncler concept is created. The women's jacket gradually became the most important product, which opened Moncler's doors to the world of fashion.
The new owner of the brand was well aware that opening up to ready-to-wear fashion was their ticket to profits and a wider fame and recognition of the brand. They didn't have to wait long for Moncler jackets to start being worn by celebrities and fashion icons. Year by year, Moncler gained a completely new status, and with it, it also gained new customers and great potential in the fashion niche.
Moncler – women's jacket for the mountains and the city
What does the Moncler phenomenon rely on? The men's and women's jacket is created with a certain bigger idea in mind – it combines new technologies, alpine roots of the brand with modern design, often with bold color and details, thanks to which one can identify with the Moncler brand. The men's jacket comes in various versions – it is available in a classic version perfect for everyday wear, but also in more fashionable, unique versions, which are also strongly associated with the Italian design of Moncler.
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‘Argens’ single-shoulder backpack
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‘Vignemale’ quilted down jacket
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‘Agneaux’ down vest
Moncler Genius – a step towards haute couture
It's hard not to mention one of the most ambitious and, at the same time, most enchanting projects, which is implemented under the slogan Moncler Genius. This is a project in which the brand invites leading fashion designers to collaborate every season, who have free rein in creating unusual and absolutely stunning concepts for the new design of Moncler jackets.
Collaboration with the artistic director of Valentino, Pierpaolo Piccioli, has taken Moncler to the heights of fashion and allowed it to be seen also in the context of haute couture fashion. There is no doubt that today Moncler combines practical design with projects that keep it at the forefront of fashion brands, behind which stands history, reliability, and taking steps on the highest peaks. Also those in the fashion industry.
