Askov Finlayson Refocuses Brand Strategy
The Minneapolis-based brand will solely dedicate its in-house product line to a climate positive parka.
Last year, we reported that the environmentally conscious men’s lifestyle brand Askov Finlayson would temporarily close its doors to phase out third-party brands like Patagonia and Red Wing and focus entirely on its own line of in-house products—which would include introducing women’s wear—as well as to grow its wholesale strategy (read more here).
While that still remains to be somewhat true, throughout the closure, the brand took some time to rethink its strategy, and announced this morning that it has honed in on its branded product offering and decided to shift 100 percent of its efforts to one product: a parka.
This fall, Askov will reopen its North Loop flagship store (and launch a new-and-improved website) to introduce the world’s first climate positive winter parka. The brand is designing a coat for both men and women and plan to put the new product at the core of its offering. “We are evolving from being a men’s boutique retailer to a larger, more focused brand,” says Devin O’Brien, VP of Marketing for Askov Finlayson.
According to O’Brien, the team sees the parka as the pinnacle of the outerwear category, and has always thought about evolving to that point. “We have credibility in both the outerwear and sustainability spaces,” he says. “And being a brand that puts emphasis on celebrating the North, we decided to turn the plan around and do what we care about the most.”
As a climate positive company Askov recognized that a lot of work goes into designing one thing at an extremely detailed level, and feels confident that its team can do something really special and continue being a leader in this space. “We’ve reworked the entire company in order to best serve the mission of the brand,” O’Brien says. He and CEO Eric Dayton have put together a team with extensive experience in outerwear and technical design.
As for its wholesale strategy, Askov will no longer sell to third-party retailers and shift all of its focus to the brick-and-mortar and e-commerce shops. “We hope this will help us keep our community and the organizations we support on the mission side of the business at the center of our brand,” says O’Brien.
The parkas will be available to shop at the flagship as well as on the website (which according to O’Brien is undergoing a total facelift) beginning November 1. Customers who sign up for emails will be granted early access. askovfinlayson.com