Arc’teryx’s System_A Collection for GORP-Wearing City Folks

Make no mistake: Arc’teryx remains an outdoors brand first and foremost. However, with the explosion of GORP in city settings over the past five years, namely in fashion’s most influential circles, of course they’d be remised not to consider what the style-savvy customer wanted from a brand like them. Was it performance-oriented shells and other technical apparel? T-shirts with the Arc’teryx bird logo emblazoned across the chest?

Evident by Arc’teryx’s heads-down approach to their hardwearing gear — save for a recent collab with Beams and an upcoming one with Jil Sander — they did not heed the hype. Instead of buckling under the newfound demand for their products from streetwear shoppers, Arc’teryx furthered its commitment to technical apparel, launching new weatherproof collections and hiring Nicole McLaughlin as a design ambassador. Their persistence forced the on-trend to figure out their own ways of incorporating GORP into everyday outfits. See: how Frank Ocean wore plain jeans with a bright orange shell jacket, for example, or how Drake matched a camo Arc’teryx coat with cargo pants. The hype’s undeniable now.

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Now, Arc’teryx is at least acknowledging this consumer. Launched on August 11th, the brand’s newest collection, System_A, is the gateway into the Arc’teryx world […] for younger, progressive consumers who are a little bit more style-conscious, “Creative Director Taka Kasuga tells GQ. Comprising products like thigh-length, triple-layer GORE-TEX C-KNIT rain jackets, lightweight nylon cargo pants, packable shells, temperature regulating T-shirts and the ilk, this collection caters as much to those already obsessed with Arc’teryx as it does those entirely unfamiliar. And, of course, it covers everyone in-between, too, from the fashionable to the fledgling adventurer.

The second installment of the brand’s new line just dropped, and, if we learned anything from the first go around, stock is limited. Plus, demand’s sky-high. Act fast.

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