 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Technical apparel |
| Founded | 1989 as Rock Solid 1991 as Arc'teryx |
| Founder | Dave Lane Jeremy Guard |
| Headquarters | North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
Number of locations |
|
Area served | Worldwide |
Number of employees | 1,200 globally (2020)[1] |
| Parent | Amer Sports |
| Divisions |
|
| Website | arcteryx |
Arc'teryx is a Canada-based, Chinese-owned apparel company specializing in outdoor apparel and equipment headquartered inNorth Vancouver, British Columbia. It focuses on technical apparel formountaineering and Alpine sports, including related accessories. The company's name and logo was created by Jeremy Guard. Arc'teryx is known for its waterproofGore-Tex shell jackets, knitwear, anddown parkas.[2][3] Arc'teryx's parent company is Amer Sports a Finnish sporting goods multinational, which is now owned by Chinese retailer Anta Sports and its co-investors after a 2019 acquisition. Amer Sports, which also owns brands like Salomon and Wilson, then became a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2024.[4]
Founded in 1989 asRock Solid, the company re-branded in 1991 as Arc'teryx to produce outerwear and climbing gear for theCoast Mountains in Canada. The company was sold toSalomon Group in 2001 andAmer Sports in 2005. The company is a major influence in the "gorpcore" and "normcore" fashion movements, the wearing of minimalist, technical apparel in urban settings.[3][5] The brand is colloquially known as "dead bird".[6]
Due to its recent Rising Dragon firework in Tibet, the brand is facing widespread boycott in China for going against its stated environmental ethos.[7]
Originally named "Rock Solid" by co-founder Dave Lane, the company's first line of products was climbing gear.[8][9] Dave Lane sold a 50% interest in Rock Solid to Jeremy Guard, who changed the company name to Arc'teryx in 1991.[9] The name and logo reference theArchaeopteryx, thetransitional fossil of earlydinosaurs to modern dinosaurs (birds).[10][9] Guard chose the name to represent the idea of acceleratingevolution as characterized by thegeologic time scale of fossils.[10][8] Guard was president and principal of the company from 1991 to 2001.[8] Using a heatlaminate (thermolamination) technology, the partners designed and marketed theVaporharness, which would become the company's most popular item.[8] In 1993, after a series of relocations and staff additions, Arc'teryx released theBora backpack using the sameVapor technology. In 1996, the company introduced technical apparel featuringGore-Tex after obtaining licenses fromW. L. Gore & Associates.[8][9] Arc'teryx re-located its headquarters toBurnaby,British Columbia in 1999 and then to North Vancouver in 2005.[8]
In 2001, Arc'teryx was purchased bySalomon Group, a French subsidiary of the German retailerAdidas.[11] In 2005, Arc'teryx was sold to Finnish retailerAmer Sports.[12] In 2019, Chinese retailerAnta Sports bought a controlling stake (56%) in Amer.[13] As their apparel line expanded Arc'teryx began manufacturing in international markets, specifically inChina, thePhilippines,Vietnam,Bangladesh,El Salvador,Laos, andGreece.[14] Since the early 2020s, Arc'teryx has co-produced collections with high-fashion brands and designers which expanded their consumer market beyond outdoor enthusiasts.[15][16]Arc’teryx’s parent company, Finland’s Amer Sports, was acquired by Chinese brand Anta in 2019.[17]
Their garments, accessories, and apparel are organized into various product families and collections, all aimed at different aspects of mountain activities, with two exceptions:[10]
Arc'teryx partnered with artistCai Guo-Qiang to launchThe Rising Dragon, a fireworks display, as part of a marketing campaign. On September 19, 2025,The Rising Dragon received significant public backlash due to potential environmental harm. Fireworks emitted colored smoke on a plateau inShigatse in theTibet Autonomous Region, which is one of the world's most fragile ecosystems in the world. The performance was staged at an elevation approximately 18,000 feet above sea level.[20][21][22][23]
Although organizers claimed that described the show used "used biodegradable, environmentally friendly materials" and that all stock herds had been relocated, no environmental assessment was completed prior to the event.[21] Arc'teryx issued a public apology and stated that it would work with an external agency to assess the project's impact.[23] Neither Arc’teryx nor Cai's studio has cleaned up since their firework, contrary to their issued statements. The burden of the job has since fallen on the shoulders of the local community.[citation needed] As a result of the controversy, "four Chinese officials have been dismissed" from their jobs, with the BBC citing them as "Gyantse county's Communist Party secretary, public security chief and two senior members of county and city-level environmental agencies."[24]
Arc'teryx is seen as a high-endstatus symbol among youth, "just shy ofStone Island andMoncler."[25][26][27] TheFinancial Times noted one of their largest demographics as "urbanites" in 2022.[28] Labeled acult brand byFast Company in 2021,[29] Arc'teryx is worn by "[both] hikers andhype-beasts" according toThe New York Times.[30]
The company is a major influence in the "gorpcore" and "normcore" fashion movements – the wearing of minimalist, outdoor apparel in urban settings, along withMammut,REI,Marmot andPatagonia.[31][3] Throughout 2022, aTikTok trend emerged where individuals would shower, fully clothed with an Arc'teryx jacket, as British rapper YT's song "Arc'teryx" played in the background.[2] Arc'teryx is a staple ofGeneration Z andzillennial fashion, particularly in the U.S. and Canada.[32][33][34][35] Luxury fashion houses that have minimalist aesthetics collaborate with Arc'teryx to producecapsule collections, according toThe New York Times andGQ.[16][9]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)It's not often that Goretex, Tekla, Stussy and Arc'teryx are mentioned in the same breath as dill pickles, and yet they're rapidly reaching a similar status. That's right, the newest obsession among taste-making, metropolitan Gen Z-ers.
