Après-ski can kill Gorpcore.
The upcoming Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics have not yet started but they could be crucial for this shift in outdoor fashion.
Starting Point
Over the last couple of months, we have seen a new fashion obsession: skiing. Skims X The North Face, Nike x Jacquemus, YSL, Balenciaga, Rossignol x AC Milan, J Crew, etc. These projects represent a significant new intersection between fashion and sportswear, once considered a niche but now an aesthetic that drives interest and revenue.
Mountain Experience
Approximately 12% of the world’s 2000 ski resorts capture 73% of all global skier visits, indicating that après-ski demand is highly concentrated within élite destination ecosystems where luxury apparel penetration would be highest. Moreover, the cost of skiing in Europe has risen by 34.8% above inflation since 2015, creating even more exclusivity and aspiration around the mountain experience overall.
Consumer Behavior
As reported by Business of Fashion, ski functionality is not the primary purchase driver for many new entrants. That’s why “Skicore” trend adoption by skiing novices (consumers wearing Fair Isle knits and puffer jackets without snow participation) validates that lifestyle and (retro) aesthetic positioning outperform technical specifications for significant segments.
Gorpcore Decrease
The rise of the lifestyle and cultural cachet of ski destination culture coincides with the post-peak Gorpcore era we are living in.
⚡️⚡️⚡️Takeaway
The upcoming Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics have not yet started but they could be crucial for this shift in outdoor fashion. From Gorpcore’s functional DNA to the Après-ski’s aesthetic, connecting luxury and sport culture. As we all know, sport is a new narrative for fashion and luxury brands, and the winter games can boost this new aesthetic through social media and athletes, reaching a specific audience.
The question is: are the Winter Games able to create a global fashion phenomenon, or will their impact be limited to specific niches?
Relly good insights VIto, I've also written a post (in Italian) that will be out next Thursday in my Substack but in a very light & ironic approach though.
Real question while I was writing that comes to my mind was: how this is gonna live with the overall change that we see in climate and in economy everywhere?
How big is for a brand to take the challenge of producing high tech material for skiing and then maybe having to cut the line in few years?