Once temps drop, Moncler jackets are everywhere in New York City. In fact, the brand’s omnipresent puffy coats have shone through the city’s grit and grime for decades. From Flatbush to Fifth Avenue, Moncler jackets are a common thread connecting rappers, graffiti writers, sneakerheads, fashion fans, and other go-getters throughout the five boroughs.
Case in point, Moncler recently tapped BMX pro Nigel Sylvester to be the first ambassador for its Creators campaign. Given the love Moncler gets in the streets of NYC, Sylvester is a natural fit. He was born and raised in Queens, where he fell for hip hop from an early age, including all the clothes and swag that go with it.
But Sylvester was not the first New Yorker to rock with Moncler. From legendary hip hop soul singers running Moncler puffers in the mid ‘90s to Brooklyn drill rappers showing out in crispy Maya jackets today, influential New York artists have always had mad love for the brand. And that’s to say nothing of the throngs of well-heeled New Yorkers that you’ll see wearing their puffers when temperatures drop below 40 degrees in ritzy neighborhoods too.
Beyond simple warmth, there’s another reason New Yorkers gravitate towards Moncler: the label has long been at the forefront of design. Since Remio Ruffini acquired Moncler in 2003, it’s collaborated with designers and visionaries at the forefronts of fashion and streetwear on the regular. Among other thought leaders, Moncler has dropped collabs with Thom Browne and the late Virgil Abloh, with the former adding waterproof functionality to suiting-inspired silhouettes and the latter creating a line inspired by maritime workwear. Collaborations like those proved so successful for Moncler, the label formalized its collaborative process, founding the Genius program in 2018.
And Moncler Genius strives to innovate in ways that transcend clothes. Rather than following fashion’s traditional quarterly release schedule, Genius works like a New York streetwear brand, dropping collaborative capsules monthly, sharing the spotlight with a rotating cast from the fashion figureheads like Hiroshi Fujiwara and Pierpaolo Piccioli.
Under Ruffini, Moncler continues to grow, putting its stamp on new categories like fragrances, collaborating on eyewear with Pharell, and even making big moves in the footwear game. Recently, Moncler got plenty of shine when it hired Nathan Van Hook as its Head of Footwear Design. Van Hook’s first project, a waterproof Gore-Tex sneaker with Vibram soles known as the Trailgrip GTX, is among most impressive luxury sneaker releases in recent memory, garnering big hype and favorable press, as well as plenty of love in the streets.
While Moncler is now a staple of New York’s most stylish urban environments, it wouldn’t have gotten where it is without balancing its dedication to innovation with a commitment to the technical details that kept skiers and mountaineers warm, dry, and safe for decades. In fact, that dynamic was there from the start, with the label quickly pivoting from producing sleeping bags to outfitting renowned French climber Lionel Teray with sleeping bag-inspired jackets on his successful summit of Makalu in 1952.
To honor that legacy while celebrating its second home in New York City, Moncler decided to launch its 70th anniversary celebration in the Big Apple. Starting October 5, New Yorkers can visit Moncler’s “Extraordinary Expedition” in the Meatpacking District, where they’ll be able to experience a massive replica of a mountain surrounded by an immersive 3D film and even wind, rain, and scents that simulate a high altitude mountain adventure. The “Expedition” will also display archive pieces and artifacts from the brand’s legacy, as well as allow 500 attendees to mint NYC-exclusive NFTS created by 3D artist Antoni Tudisco, with each granting its holder special access to the brand’s loyalty tier.
Whether in the digital realm, atop a mountain, or simply climbing the stairs to get out of the New York subway, Moncler has the goods to keep you warm while looking fresh. To learn more, hit Moncler.com, then visit its “Extraordinary Exhibit” in Manhattan between October 5-9.
