Futurism in Women's Activewear: Roxy & Courrèges
Stephanie Gilmore in the Roxy & Courrèges orange crop top, zip-up hoodie and white zip-front one piece bathing suit. Image credit: Roxy.
Every woman needs a little white bikini this season, and the unique collaboration between women's surfwear pioneer, Roxy, and French fashion house, Courrèges will have you hitting the gym, the beaches and the slopes this year in high-performance, technically designed gear with an ultramodern aesthetic.
Roxy has done designer collaborations in the past with Diane Von Furstenberg in 2013 and Cynthia Rowely in 2011. For Roxy, these collaborations were safe. The designers played more toward the young, carefree juniors-centric image Roxy had always purveyed. Now, in the growing market for high-end sportswear akin to Lululemon, the Roxy & Courrèges collaboration has a more mature, modern appeal for Roxy, and an innovative niche market opening for Courrèges.
Minimalistic and modern running pieces for the Summer capsule collection. Image credit: Soens.
Co-president of Courrèges, Frédéric Torloting, alongside Jacques Bungert, explains that they have been close friends with Pierre Agnes, CEO of the Quiksilver Group, for a long time and share a mutual passion for surfing, skiing and snowboarding. The idea for the collaboration came when they decided to create a high-performance sportswear collection.
"Quite simply, the concept corresponds perfectly to the spirit of Courrèges," Torloting said. "After all, André Courrèges loved sports and was constantly working on innovating the technical aspect of clothing. And, just like Roxy, he came from the South West of France."
After their first meeting in February 2015, the two teams began working together between the Courrèges workshop in Paris and the Roxy headquarters in Saint-Jean de Luz. This fully French originated collection displays the influence and broadening of active lifestyle brands across a global fashion market.
"We're so happy and proud... This collaboration was exactly the kind of involvement that Courrèges was looking for," said Torloting.
Roxy & Courrèges product reveal during the product launch in Paris. Image credit: sportandsand.com.
The collection consists of sixteen pieces designed specifically for running, as well as snow and water sports. This collaboration holds true to Courrèges' legacy of a minimalist and avant-garde style, and is seamlessly blended with Roxy's technical, performance design specialties. The teams utilized materials such as light neoprene, jersey, recylcled polyamide, and UV50 protective features in the Summer collections, and Roxy's DryFlight and anti-cold Enjoy&Care materials in the Winter collection's snow pieces. Featured in both the Summer and Winter collections are clean, architectural lines, solid white pieces with pops of orange and hints of contemporary opaque sheerness. The mod color scheme contrasts beautifully with the tropical blues of the campaign's imagery from the Maldives with Stephanie Gilmore, Roxy's surf ambassador for the collection's Summer capsule.
Gilmore product testing in the Maldives with custom Courrèges retro style single fin board and white one piece suit. Image credit: Soens.
Featured product shots of the collaboration's ruining an surf capsule. Available this June. Image credit: Roxy.
The six-time world champion surfer was in Paris last week for the collaboration's official launch.
Image Credit: Instagram/@stephaniegilmore.
The running and surf collections will be available in June 2016 and the ski and snow collection in October 2016. They will be available in a selection of Roxy shops and also online at www.roxy.com. Prices start at €49,95 for a beanie and go up to €699,95 for a snow jacket.
