Portland backcountry ski apparel maker Trew has launched a new division of its company to focus on innovative products, starting with a dream product from its mountaineering brand ambassador.
"He started describing this ultralight anorak that, to me at the time, I was like, 'That is pretty out there, no wonder that doesn't exist for this marketplace,'" founder Chris Pew said.
The first line in Trew’s new business unit, the Experimental Division, is the LW SL3 Collection. It is inspired by answers Pew got when he asked brand ambassador and Swiss mountain guide, Gilles Sierro, what his dream product would be.
A product like that doesn’t really exist, Pew said, because their customer base is focused on staying warm and dry at all costs, and doing that with a lightweight product can be challenging. But that didn’t stop Pew and his team from working for 18 months to design one.
The line's anorak jacket and bib are made of an ultra-light three-layer waterproof, breathable and laminate fabric. The jacket features a two-way front zipper, a side zipper for entry and large venting and is a longer-fitting freeride style anorak that is seen more in snowboarding gear than skiing gear.
While the anorak is more innovative in its design and style, Pew said, the pants still incorporate innovations like magnetic cuff bottoms. This allows the cuff of the pants to fit around snowboarding and alpine boots with more ease and generally make them more versatile.
Trew is putting these products into a new line to draw attention to them, Pew said, and also because of the seasonality of the business. A lot of their main line products have already been out for six months, so the Experimental Division will be all about making new and innovative products outside of their normal lines.
“The retail calendar for snow and ski is stuck in October, November, December, whereas our winters have been ... pushed later because of global climatic weather,” Pew said. “So this is just a fresh way to come and be like ‘This is totally out of the normal calendar, this is out of your normal expectations for products.’”
