COPENHAGEN — Iceland-based sustainable outerwear brand 66 North is marking its 99th anniversary with an immersive exhibition at Copenhagen Fashion Week.
The brand has called the show “867,815,464 Hours,” referring to its years in business, and is showcasing archive pieces as well as new-season offerings. There are also pieces from a collaboration with the London-based designer Charlie Constantinou.
The company’s chief executive officer Helgi Óskarsson said he chose Copenhagen for a number of reasons.
66°North’s chief executive officer Helgi Óskarsson.
“The first store we opened outside of Iceland was in Copenhagen and that was 10 years ago. Also, Iceland used to be part of Denmark, we were under the Danish crown for 500 years,” he said in a preview.
“Copenhagen used to be the capital of Iceland for hundreds of years, and we share so many cultural similarities. There’s a personal aspect to it, too — I used to live here from 1996 to 2001,” he added.
The exhibition showcases the Olympic kit that 66 North made for the Icelandic team in 1998; the suit that mountaineer Leifur Örn Svavarsson wore to climb the north side of Mount Everest in 2013, and a fisherman’s jacket that dates back to the 1960s. The coat is based on a 66 North style from 1926 when the brand was founded.
Óskarsson has a deeply personal relationship with the fishermen’s jacket.
“My grandfather went down with his ship after a British trawler sailed [into] them. There was so much fog, the trawler didn’t see. The whole crew went down, but they were rescued. My grandfather was the last one out. He was saved, but he was so cold he developed pneumonia and passed away at 39, and with seven children. The story of my family is not exceptional,” he said.
66 North’s fisherman jacket.
In 1995, the company came up with a solution to those maritime accidents, developing the Flot Overall, an insulated suit that floats in water.
“The brand started out as a way of saving the life of fishermen and this is [still] so close to our heart,” said Óskarsson, adding that he wants to take the exhibition on a worldwide tour, starting with London.
The brand opened a store on Regent Street in 2022, and is stocked at END Clothing, Harrods and Browns in London.
“To me, London is the retail capital of Europe, if not the world. I have been following British music and fashion since I was a teenager,” said Óskarsson, adding that he handpicked the London store’s playlist by adding tracks from Tears for Fears, Joy Division and Oasis, whom he will be watching perform at Wembley Stadium this summer for his birthday.
Denmark and London are 66 North’s main markets, but the brand also counts Germany and the U.S. as key areas of interest. The company is expanding its wholesale and direct-to-consumer operations. 66 North’s Asia-Pacific market is on the rise, with small distributors in South Korea and China.
66 North’s fisherman jacket.
“[Asia] hasn’t been a focus of ours, but we see there’s a lot of demand, especially from Chinese customers when they come to Iceland. The Chinese spend way more than anyone else on our clothes. During Chinese New Year, they surpass the U.S. customers in terms of how much they buy — and they love the number 66 because it’s a lucky number in China,” Óskarsson said.
The brand’s home country remains its biggest market, where more than 98.5 percent of Icelandic homes own an item of clothing from 66 North, according to Óskarsson.
He said the brand plays in the premium performance category rather than fashion. The jackets range in price from 390 pounds to 2,175 pounds.
Iceland’s tourism has also played a big role in the brand’s success.
“We’ve had a surge in tourism in Iceland in the last 15 years. Many tourists who come to Iceland need protective clothing, or they want to bring something back home that they associate with Iceland,” Óskarsson said.
