White hot: With the boom in snowsports, luxury brands are zooming in on winter wear

This article first appeared in Harper’s Bazaar Singapore, the leading fashion glossy on the best of style, beauty, design, travel and the arts. Go to harpersbazaar.com.sg and follow harpersbazaarsingapore on Facebook and harpersbazaarsg on Instagram and TikTok. The March 2025 issue is out on newsstands now.

A moment of calm envelops you, as it always does at the top of the hill. After all, you are thousands of kilometres away from your work e-mail and the terrain around you is a blanket of white.

Your goggles catch the gleaming sun rays and you push yourself off the top of the slope, and just like that, calm turns into adrenaline as you navigate the mountainside with your skis and plenty of verve.

For a group of tourists each year, this is the feeling that they chase. Whether they are snowboarding, skiing or snowshoeing, it is the act of getting physical amid a wintery landscape that calls them back. And according to strategists and industry observers, it is also a group that is growing faster and bigger every year.

“Since the pandemic, there has been a remarkable surge in the number of people signing up for ski holidays,” says Mr Wong Yew Hoong, director of local tour operator EU Holidays.

He also notes a broader shift in travel preferences towards skiing and snowboarding abroad, particularly after the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Mr Geoff Buchheister, chief executive of Aspen Snowmass – a company that oversees four of Aspen, Colorado’s mountains that span more than 2,300ha of snow terrain – says: “We’re witnessing a diversity of new participants of all ages discovering the sport for the first time.”

Beyond the yearning for thrills, there is an aspirational aspect to snowsports, says Ms Mimi Lu, head of strategy, media APAC at the multinational media and digital marketing communications company Dentsu. She likens its appeal to the growing desire for slow, mindful lifestyles and leisure pursuits.

So then, what does this mean for the fashion industry? After all, snowsports is not exactly in the same league as yoga, barre or any of the other everyday sports that can be easily done with the same set of activewear.

Snowboarding and skiing may take place on similar landscapes, but the gear required is often hyper-specific to the sport itself, and would require its own suite of paraphernalia and clothing.  

Fashion houses have been putting their lens of focus on snowsports as well in recent months.

Pharrell Williams at Louis Vuitton released a line of winter wear that mixes function with the designer’s penchant for street-inspired form. Think chunky boots, tracksuits in the maison’s pixelated camouflage print and a suite of bags in various sizes to accompany your winter travels.

Other French luxury houses Dior and Chanel both dropped capsule collections in the last quarter of 2024, to offer women traipsing up the slopes their own wardrobe of chic and cosy items. Dior offers a line of winter-ready staples with icons like the star and the Plan De Paris motif, while Chanel has a quilted pair of skis for your next adventure.

Then, there is Moncler, a brand that many think of when they think about fashionable threads for sub-zero climates. Fresh from its City Of Genius showcase in Shanghai are gothic styles dreamt up by Rick Owens or Americana-inspired pieces by Palm Angels.

The Moncler Grenoble line is also at your disposal should you need high-performance clothing that can keep up with more intensive snow activities.

Ms Lu says: “The trend in snowsports is here to stay and is far from being a passing fad. With the global climate shifting towards colder and longer winters in many regions, this boom is likely to grow as people continue to embrace outdoor and slow-living lifestyles, making snowsports a staple of winter leisure.”

She adds that “the snowsports boom offers luxury brands a chance to engage younger generations who value adventure and authenticity”.

She points out that while brands are already tapping this market growth, there is still room for innovation, such as modular or customisable gear.

“Limited-edition collections or athlete partnerships can resonate with this demographic, helping brands build long-term loyalty while maintaining their core identity and exclusivity,” she adds.

For Ms Natalie Lim, account manager at Yello, a sports marketing agency with offices in Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong, now is the time for luxury businesses to join the snowsports conversation.

She notes that the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, which luxury giant LVMH was a partner of, was a showcase of style, and the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan will likewise be in another fashion capital.

“If there was any time for luxury fashion and lifestyle brands to tap the winter sports clothing category, it’s now. You can’t pay for zeitgeist, so if the metal is hot, strike it.”

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