North Vancouver outerwear, climbing harness and backpack manufacturer Arc'teryx will scale the brick-and-mortar wall October 12, when it opens a 2,100-square-foot store at 2033 West 4th Avenue, between Arbutus and Maple streets.
The company operates a factory store in North Vancouver and has branded stores in places as far away as Singapore, Shanghai and Montreal. It opened its 17th branded store in Seattle three weeks ago. Its Vancouver store will be its 18th branded location
Most of its products are sold through a dealer network. In Asia, where many of its stores are, there was less opportunity to sell its products through relevant department stores or outdoor specialty stores, Arc'teryx's vice-president and senior director of marketing Adam Ketcheson told Business in Vancouver.
"Arc'teryx is a global brand with a growing and loyal following," he said. "The opening of our first fully-branded Vancouver store finally allows us to provide the complete Arc'teryx retail experience to our local customers."
Recreational mountain climbers Jeremy Guard and David Lane founded Arc'Teryx in 1990 in North Vancouver and grew the venture before selling it to global sportswear giant Adidas-Salomon AG for an undisclosed amount in 2001.
Adidas-Salomon then flipped the company as part of a US$628.4 million mega-deal with Finland's Amer Sports in 2005. Adidas-Salomon split in two, with Adidas sending its French Salomon division (including Arc'teryx as well as brands such as Mavic, Cliché and Bonfire) to Amer.
The rest of the company continued to be based in Germany and re-branded simply as Adidas AG.
