Let It Snow

With winter approaching, retailers in northern climates are in the midst of the ski and après-ski wear season. The number of licensing partnerships and collaborations in this space remains strong, especially on the luxury end of the spectrum, with many initiatives pairing fashion-forward, high-end apparel labels with technical winterwear specialists. Some examples of collaborative capsule collections released in the past 12 months, extending across this selling season and last, include: 

• Two French brands, winterwear specialist Pyrenex and womenswear label Balzac Paris, came together for a 1960s-influenced collection that debuted this month. Pieces include down jackets and vests, mesh t-shirts, wool slacks, pullover sweaters, and other technical items designed for use on the slopes and in everyday life. The collection offers unusual details such as leopardskin-look zippers and tailoring that minimizes the bulkiness often associated with winterwear. 
• Marc Jacobs returned for another collaboration with Disney this month, this time creating a 20-piece Mickey Mouse ski collection for kids inspired by ski clubs of the past. It includes puffer jackets, t-shirts, sweatshirts, sneakers, and accessories such as hats and bags. Designs feature retro illustrations of mountains and ski slopes, graphics of Mickey, all over-prints, and embroidered design elements like sleds, slope flags, and ski goggles. The two brands have been collaborating since 2013. 
• In September, New York fashion and lifestyle brand Aimé Leon Dore paired with The North Face for a second time to release a Fall/Winter 2026 winterwear collection. The 30-piece range features Gore-Tex pieces, down jackets, fleece rugby shirts, a ballistic tech vest, duffel bag, and more, including reimaginings of some of The North Face’s key styles. Separately, The North Face announced an eight-year deal with U.S. Ski & Snowboard in May, making it the performance partner for the Olympic team and kicking off with a consumer collection this fall featuring hoodies, t-shirts, puffers, and bags. It also collaborated with SKIMS for a second go-round in late 2025, this time adding kidswear to a winterwear collection consisting of technical gear, shapewear, puffer coats, and more. 
• J. Crew also announced an agreement with U.S. Ski & Snowboard, in January, making it the organization’s official lifestyle apparel partner. It launched a 28-piece collection of vintage red, white, and blue alpine-style casual separates and loungewear, representing the beginning of a three-year partnership. Technical items produced by J. Crew with athletic brand Kappa are also part of the range. 
• Luxury skiwear label Perfect Moment, known for combining performance with trend-forward fun, brought its sensibility to a broader audience by pairing with H&M for a 28-piece, limited-time après-ski capsule in December of 2025. 
• In late 2025, French apparel and accessories brand Jacquemus paired with Nike for an 18-piece collection, including a two-in-one water- and windproof Gore-Tex jacket, bomber jacket, Gore-Tex pants, jumpsuits, leggings, shirts, and other pieces for men and women. This represented the first ski collection for the designer label. Jacquemus has been collaborating with Nike since 2022, and has produced several non-ski-related drops before and after this range. 

Skiwear has become an evergreen opportunity, especially for luxury labels and their performance partners, and this year the Winter Olympics, held in February in Milan and Cortina, Italy, provided an additional boost. The space has been growing since the pandemic, due to trends such as an increase in ski tourism, rising interest in ski styles as part of lifestyle and not just performance collections, and the growing presence of the leading luxury houses in the sector, among others. Many of the same players are involved in collaborations year after year, but new players continue to enter the space as well.