Balenciaga Hits the Slopes in Style: Unveiling Their Stunning First Skiwear Collection

Balenciaga, a name synonymous with high fashion and avant-garde designs, has officially entered the world of skiwear. For the first time ever, the beloved house is debuting a range of winter sport products.

The new collection features technically advanced ready-to-wear, accessories, equipment, and gear perfect gliding on the snow. Designed with innovative materials and techniques for maximum visibility, insulation, aerodynamism, and protection, the collection is as functional as it is chic.

This move marks a significant step for the brand, especially considering its recent journey toward rehabilitation after a period of controversy. The brand was trying to recover from a pair of botched ad campaigns that, in December, had led to a wild farrago of accusations, including that it had sexualized children and condoned child abuse.

Since then, the company has been on an arduous journey toward rehabilitation. Four runway shows, six collections, and a handful of red-carpet outfits later, fashion and celebrity circles alike seem to have warmed back up. In January, the brand came full circle: Just over a year after Kim Kardashian claimed to be “reevaluating” her long-standing relationship with the brand in the wake of the scandal, she’s launched her first campaign as Balenciaga’s official ambassador.

Let's delve into what makes this skiwear collection stand out and how it aligns with Balenciaga's overall brand evolution.

Read also: Balenciaga Ski Collection

A Deep Dive into the Collection

Balenciaga signatures are integrated into each piece from snowboards to skis, helmets, and poles while clothing is expertly crafted to give you the best ski trip possible. Fashion-lovers can don the Balenciaga logo on their new skis and snowboards and complete the look with a Balenciaga helmet and ski poles.

All of the outwear from jackets and vests in quilted matte nylon to tight-fitting fleece jackets are completely water-repellent and available in three different colorways while thermal layers are specially designed to keep the wearer warm and dry while tearing up the slopes. Hoodies and long-sleeved half-zip tops are designed in materials of heavy molleton, fluffy knits, fisherman-ribbed wool, and mink-style faux fur and padded gloves for maximum comfort and style.

The collection’s accessories are specially designed for athletic use with padded gloves that easily clip to jacket sleeves and ribbed knit beanies that incorporate foldable sunglass lenses. Alongside them are a series of cold weather necessities from leggings and socks to facemasks, gloves, and scarves. Each piece comes in a variety of shapes and sizes and are adorned with a special reflective Balenciaga logo.

When the day is over the new collection has an assortment of ready-to-wear pieces for a casual winter look. Slip into a pair of comfortable Alaxa boots or the 3XL Ski Sneaker developed specially for winter conditions and put on a pair of waterproof fleece-lined jeans in signature blue stretch denim.

For their first ski wear collection, Balenciaga presents a wide range of expertly designed athletic products that radiate the house’s luxurious essence.

Key Features:

Technically advanced materials for maximum performance
Water-repellent outerwear
Thermal layers for warmth and dryness
Athletic-use accessories with reflective logos
Casual winter-ready-to-wear pieces

The Evolution of Luxury Skiwear

Skiwear has recently been modernized by emerging luxury ski brands and fashion designers bold enough to take on technical apparel. While the sport was once dominated by ski gear brands that have been around since the early days of the sport itself (Rossignol was founded in 1907, Bogner in 1932, Fusalp in 1952, and Moncler in 1953), luxury skiwear has slowly become relevant in the direct-to-consumer market and heritage fashion houses alike.

For decades, shopping for the best ski clothing brands meant shopping sport labels with established reputations. And it makes sense; the products require technical knowledge, extreme craftsmanship, and durability, and for a time, there wasn’t an appetite for fashion with a capital F on the ski slopes. But that was then, and this is now.

Skiwear has seemingly become the new frontier for high fashion-because what is a piste, if not a snowy catwalk?-with fans of the sport eager to showcase their personal style. Traditional ski apparel brands, and retailers, meanwhile, have been taking notes.

Balenciaga Skiwear Campaign

Emerging Trends and Key Players

All this momentum makes ski one of the most exciting new categories in fashion, with young luxury skiwear brands eager to make their mark.A label like Halfdays is making colorful, function-forward ski sets more approachable in price, while Slope Siren, which launched in 2022, is taking it old school with glamorous ski suits that conjure the sport’s 1980s heyday as seen in seminal films like Aspen Extreme.

Whether you prefer to shop heritage houses or new designers, the range of recent ski wear on the market suits every style. Below, a roundup of what’s new from emerging labels and timeless names to shop now.

Key Brands in the Luxury Skiwear Market:

Fusalp: Launched in 1972, Fulsap, short for “fuseau from the Alps” (a nod to the brand’s most-loved ski pants) first rose in popularity after Olympic ski champions wore the brand’s apparel in the big games. Founded by two tailors from Annecy who shared a deep appreciation for the sport, Fulsap has since evolved to offer both technical and high-quality, fashion-friendly skiwear.
Cordova: Want to look really good zipping down Ajax? As in, evoke a Bond-girl glamour in pieces? Cordova is the brand for you. Named after the Alaskan town, the label was founded in the winter of 2016 and has since made a name for itself as the brand for second-skin ski suits and some of the best ski jackets.
Perfect Moment: For fashion girls, there’s really just one ski brand: Perfect Moment. Though its “Aspen” sweaters and other cozy knits have become staples of chic chalets and ski lodges, the brand actually has a much longer history than you might assume.
Bogner: Historically a skiwear favorite, Bogner has been a leader in the space for decades. The founder, Maria Bogner, set out to create best-in-class skiwear in 1957 and has been pioneering high-end slope style ever since.
Moncler: Founded in 1952 in Monestier-de-Clermont, a tiny mountain village near Grenoble, Moncler had a focus on mountain sports from the beginning. Marrying a unique fashion point of view and appreciation for sport, the house took on a more identifiable style when, in 2003, Remo Ruffini joined the brand.
Arc'teryx: Founded in 1989, Arc’teryx has become a trending go-to for all things gear-from hiking to mountain climbing to skiing. The brand is best known for marrying an appreciation for savvy design and technical wear-and its approach to ski gear is no different.
Goldbergh: Brought to life in 2009 by Sandra Peet and Lieke van de Berg, Goldbergh approaches ski wear with a focus on fashion, trend, and practicality.
Jetset: Though Jet Set was technically founded in St. Moritz in 1969, the brand ranks as a new name to know, having been fully relaunched in 2018.
Halfdays: Founded by Karelle Golda, Ariana Ferwerda, and Kiley McKinnon (the latter being an Olympic freestyle aerial skier), Halfdays is a collection of ski clothes designed by women, for women.
Ienki Ienki: A Kyiv-based brand founded in 2016, Ienki Ienki is born out of a passion for sport and fashion.
We Norwegians: Launched in October 2014 by Tove Grane and Oyvind Lauritzen, We Norwegians (which is, yes, founded by two Norwegians) offers an all-important but not often-seen component of ski-wear: baselayers.
Aztech Mountain: Fans of Ssense, Chopova Lowena, and tie-dyed cashmere-you know, the cool crowd-now have a brand crafting skiwear to outfit them on the slopes.
Mackage: Though Canadian cold-weather outfitter Mackage is not a new label (it was founded in Montreal in 1999) the brand has recently amped up its ski offerings (and debuted snow-friendly footwear in 2020).
Gucci: Gucci is back at it with a capsule collection of skiwear-consider it an assortment or the ski bunny who has everything (see: the monogrammed all-over goggles).
Vuarnet: Vuarnet launched its recent collection specifically to suit extreme cold and provide protection.
Fendi: Since releasing a skiwear line in 2016, Fendi has specialized in both slope and après-ski wear.
Prada: Marked with the brand’s signature red logo, the brand began selling ski wear in the 1990s with puffers and ski suits.
Louis Vuitton: Louis Vuitton released a new, combined men’s and women’s ski collection to welcome the new season.
Alps & Meters: Alps and Meters launched with menswear and a limited collection in 2014, inspired by the discovery of a particularly great vintage knit at a shop in Åre, Sweden.
Slope Siren: Inspired by the glamour of skiing in the ’70s and ’80s, Slope Siren suits are created to make a statement on the mountain.
FP Movement: FP Movement is Free People’s activewear brand launched under Free People in 2012.

Balenciaga's Road to Redemption

Balenciaga is known for its unconventional campaigns and shows, including runway presentations in which models have trudged through mud and blizzardlike conditions in expensive high-end clothing. In the immediate aftermath, Balenciaga issued two statements via its Instagram Stories apologizing for the plush bears, which they said “should not have been featured with children in this campaign,” as well as the “unsettling documents” in the separate spring-summer campaign: “We take this matter very seriously and are taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our spring 23 campaign photoshoot. We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form.

Following the backlash to the ads, The Business of Fashion rescinded its 2022 Global Voices Award offer to Demna, noting that it holds “the safety of children in the highest regard.” The fallout even extended to one of Balenciaga’s brick-and-mortar stores in London, where a street artist appeared to have defaced the storefront of its flagship, stenciling “paedophilia” on one of the windows, according to Newsweek.

In February, Demna elaborated on the photo shoots in an interview with Vogue, addressing both the Spring 2023 and Gift Shop campaigns. He apologized to those hurt by the fashion house’s actions and admitted that he “didn’t realize how inappropriate it would be to put these objects [in the image] and still have the kid in the middle.” Discussing the prop documents for the first time, he said, “I don’t know how they ended up there.

In March of 2023, less than six months after the campaign, Demna tepidly showed his first collection since the debacle, marking a significant departure from his former signature approach. Unlike other shows he had done, which have included elaborate sets covered in mud (the work of Spanish artist Santiago Sierra) as well as wind and snow, it was held in a cavernous white room with no embellishments.

On every chair was a note from Demna. “Fashion has become a kind of entertainment,” he wrote. A few months later, the designer attended the Met Gala and released a line of resortwear, both with little fanfare. Later in May, Balenciaga dressed several celebrities, including Michelle Yeoh, Alton Mason, and Salma Hayek (who happens to be married to the chief executive of the house’s parent company, Kering), for the Cannes Film Festival to little, if any, public pushback.

Balenciaga closed out 2023 with a well-attended show in L.A. that riffed on celebrity pap walks with UGG-like boots, low-rise sweats, and takeout coffee cups. Kardashian was there with Kendall Jenner, alongside Tracee Ellis Ross, the Peltz Beckhams, and Nicole Kidman, who was announced as a brand ambassador the same day.

And now, the brand has officially found its way back into Kardashian’s heart and closet - which, according to a new campaign video, holds 129 Balenciaga bags. In January of 2024, Kardashian announced via Instagram Stories that she’d signed on as a brand ambassador, praising Demna’s “innovative approach to design” and “commitment to doing what’s right.” A few months later, in June, an episode of The Kardashians featured the reality star attending a Balenciaga runway show and discussing her partnership with the house.

Conclusion

Balenciaga's entry into the skiwear market is more than just a new collection; it's a statement. It reflects the brand's ability to adapt, innovate, and stay relevant in a rapidly evolving fashion landscape. Whether you're a seasoned skier or a fashion enthusiast, Balenciaga's skiwear collection offers a unique blend of style and performance that's worth exploring.

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