How Homegrown Luxury Brand 'Canada Goose' Became A Status Symbol Across The Globe

Popularly known for its comfortable and durable winter wear, Canada Goose is a prime example of how a home run family business successfully transitioned in to what has today become a multi-billion dollar luxury empire.

The brands collections range across a wide variety of winter wear from coats, vests, gloves, hats and the infamous Canada Goose jackets, a known customer favorite.

It distinctively stands out because of its blue, red and white brand logo which signifies the North Pole in reverse, with the Ocean and a Canadian Goose on the side. The brand originates from the land of Canada and is proud to have its roots in the great white north.

Canada Goose History

The brand was initially founded by Sam Tick in 1957 which was then called ‘Metro Sportswear Ltd’ made with the simple intent to design clothing to combat the harsh Canadian winters.

The production for Canada Goose began in a tiny warehouse. While global recognition was almost accidental for this brand, once it became a well-known established luxury brand across the world- it never lost its original sight. This is what makes the brand so incredibly special in terms of its positioning as well.

Although there is a definite keen focus on the people who choose to wear Canada Goose apparel, ranging from sports athletes to movie stars- pragmatism is at the heart of this brand.

While Tick continued to create high-quality winter wear all through the initial years, it was only in 1972 that a drastic change was made to the brand when Tick’s son-in-law, David Reiss joined the company. He brought about the idea of getting a down filling machine.

By this time, they had launched a new label called ‘Snow Goose’ to create custom made manufactured down filled coats for the Ontario Provincial Police, Canadian Rangers and many other government employees.

In the 1980’s Reiss went on to purchase the company from Sam Tick and created the most legendary piece of winter clothing known to man at the time, known as the ‘Expedition Parka’.

The Expedition Parka was a beast of a Parka with a strong bulk of weather protection gear that was specifically designed for the scientist stationed at the Atlantic, to protect them from freezing temperatures.

In the 1990’s the brand began manufacturing coats to Europe as well. Since the name ‘Snow Goose’ was already trademarked in Europe, the name ‘Canada Goose. Came about.

Made in Canada

Today, Canada Goose is amongst the top brands for winter wear across the globe but it remains rooted in its foundation- which was to primarily create a homegrown brand with a core focus on winter collections.

In the early 2000’s there were a lot of competitor brands who were moving manufacture and production abroad to cover the high cost of domestic labor. While these brands were of the belief that customers do not really care about where their products are made as long as the quality remains the same, Reiss had some opposing beliefs.

He knew that creating a sustainable global business will require a strong priority of quality over quantity and that in order to live up to the image of an authentic label, the brand will have to stick to its roots.

The importance of the tag of ‘Made in Canada’ derived from there and the brand can proudly call itself a family enterprise that is fully Made in Canada has successfully established itself as a global luxury brand.

Today, Canada Goose continues to bring groundbreaking designs to the winter fashion world with its innovative knit wear collection, woolen garments with sturdy yet impeccable style.