Outdoor clothing and accessories have in recent years become a trend which is referred to as “Gorpcore”. This term was initially used by Jason Chen in an article for “The Cut” in 2017 to describe an emerging aesthetic that he was observing (Chen, 2017). Gorpcore can be described as a fashion aesthetic that gives the sense that the person has a love and an affinity for the outdoors. The word Gorp stands for “Good Ol’ Raisins and Peanuts” (Kristiansen, 2017) which are common sources of energy for someone who goes hiking or camping in nature, which indicates that the Gorpcore aesthetic is rooted in practicality, utilitarianism, and the outdoors.
The popularity of this aesthetic has resulted in outdoor brands like Patagonia, Arc’teryx, Salomon, and The North Face to rise in popularity. These outdoor brands have launched collaborations with non-outdoor, high fashion brands, which can be seen as a merging of two worlds that are in many ways contradictory to each other. Because of the popularization of the Gorpcore aesthetic, high fashion brands are suddenly launching outdoor inspired apparel and even high fashion tents and thermal water bottles, and this raises the question: Has the trend gone too far and perhaps started to blur the line between functional outdoor apparel and high fashion apparel?
Gorpcore can be linked to the trend Normcore which can be described as an aesthetic that rejected consumerism and embraced plain and functional fashion with urban references. Gorpcore is about embracing the outdoors:
“this new aesthetic worships the Woods, strictly defining itself by the idioms of hiking-camping- outdoor apparel. It telegraphs an enlightenment beyond urban, bourgeois concerns: I can survive perfectly fine outside of the city — and in style, thank you.” (Chen, 2017).
In 2011 Patagonia released a full-page ad in the New York Times with the headline: “Don’t buy this jacket” as seen in the picture above. By positioning themselves as pro-environment and anti-consumerism, Patagonia increased their revenue by about 35% in two years (Bloomberg, 2013).
What Patagonia did with this ad was very different from what other retail companies were doing at the time, and Patagonia became famous for the message, “Don’t buy what you don’t need”, which encouraged consumers to think twice before they buy. At this point in time, sustainability was not as big of a topic in the mainstream as it has later become, which meant that this ad suggested a new way for people to think about fashion consumption. Furthermore, the ad spurred a conversation about the social responsibility of fashion brands and their awareness of their own environmental impact or lack thereof.
Part of Patagonias message in this ad is that consumers should only buy items that can last a long time, and if they don’t need them anymore, they should be sold or passed on to someone else. This message is very different from the capitalist agenda where everything is about profits, the message is rooted in ethics and awareness of the environment. “Don’t buy what you don’t need” is exactly the mindset that can contribute to more sustainable fashion consumption, but what about other outdoor brands? Can their collaborations with high fashion brands be seen solely as a way to make profit?
The outdoor brand Arc’teryx’s collaboration with high fashion brand Jil Sander in 2021 can be seen as a strategic way to merge two worlds for consumers who are interested in both outdoor life and fashion. This collaboration can be interpreted as a way for both brands to increase their customer base. As seen in the ad above, this jacket is a functional winter/ ski jacket which has both logos printed on the chest. When looking at this ad, where the model is standing in front of snow-covered mountains and is wearing what looks like ski/snowboarding goggles, one can presume that people who are interested in the outdoors and also care a lot about high-end brands would be interested in purchasing this jacket for their skiing trip. The skiing reference in the ad indicates that this collaboration is about functional outdoor apparel and not just fashionable/ trendy apparel.
As a result of the recent popularization of outdoor apparel, some high fashion brands have made Gorpcore items that are solely supposed to be fashionable and not necessarily functional. An example of this can be seen in the picture below, which shows the high fashion brand Off-White’s collaboration in 2020 with Arc’teryx. This example is very visibly not made for outdoor use because of the impracticality of the design - a long, flowy dress with one sleeve would definitely not be functional for outdoor life. This can be defined as an haute couture runway collection which is a creative interpretation of the Gorpcore aesthetic, but the functional aspect of Gorpcore is not a part of it. Because Arc’teryx is an outdoor brand, it seems absurd that they’re creating items that are not functional. What is the purpose of an outdoor brand launching a collection if the items are not functional for outdoor life? And why is Arc’teryx being featured in haute couture runways, is it just an attempt to “milk the hype” of the Gorpcore aesthetic?
Another example of this paradoxical type of collaboration is Comme des Garsons shoe collaboration with outdoor brand Salomon, which can be seen in the picture. Salomons practical shoes have become popular in the mainstream during the popularization of the Gorpcore aesthetic, but this collaboration differs from their usual collections. These shoes have a platform heel, which makes them less practical and indicates that their purpose is not to be functional but fashionable.
Prada is another brand that has recently launched outdoor-inspired apparel. As seen in the picture below, they have launched a backpack and a thermal water bottle. These items seem functional, but the question is: Who would bring an expensive Prada bag for a camping trip in the wild? Another question is: how durable are these items, and how practical are they actually? Usually, when you buy an outdoor thermal water bottle there will be information about its functions, for example, how many hours it can remain cold or hot, but in this case, Pradas water bottle doesn’t have any specifications on their website. This indicates that their main focus for this bottle was not the functionality but the aesthetics. You can also argue that the bag could be more functional for outdoor use if it was multifunctional instead of only having one purpose: to carry lunch boxes and water bottles.
The final example can be seen in this last picture, which features a tent made by Gucci in collaboration with The North Face. The price of this tent is € 2900 which makes it a very opulent choice for camping/ outdoor life compared to other high-quality tents on the market. You could argue that it is primarily marketed towards the upper class because people who use their tent often in all kinds of weather would probably be more concerned with the durability and the functionality of a tent rather than the symbolic capital that comes with owning an expensive Gucci x The North Face tent.
Conclusion Consumers need to think twice before they buy, but shouldn't outdoor and luxury brands do the same before producing it? Patagonia did a meaningful thing when they released the “Don’t buy this jacket”-ad in 2011, but sadly the Gorpcore trend has resulted in some brands launching collaborations that are not promoting anything other than a capitalist agenda. The line has in many cases been blurred between practical outdoor apparel and high fashion apparel. It can result in original and creative items when an outdoor brand and a high fashion brand collaborate. But when outdoor fashion becomes impractical, what is the purpose of creating it in the first place? An answer to this could be that the brands are mainly interested in gaining profit from these collaborations. On the other hand, they could also be doing it to expand their horizon and create something different than they have done before. Functional apparel or not, these brands are all exploring the possibilities of the Gorpcore aesthetic.
References
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