By: Holly Garbett • corporate • 22.05.2024
Odlo, the Swiss-based performance apparel brand, has long been respected within the outdoor industry. Founded in 1946 in Norway by Odd Roar Lofterød Sr, the brand first made its mark by developing an elastic, heat-regulating suit that revolutionised cross-country skiing. Odlo then became the apparel brand of choice for twenty-five national teams at the 1964 Innsbruck Winter Olympics – including the entire Norwegian national team – who went on to win a raft of medals. Further groundbreaking innovations followed with the introduction of the first fully synthetic sweat-wicking base layer, the launch of the pioneering three-layer principle, and expansion into performance apparel for outdoor pursuits beyond Nordic sports.
Nearly 80 years on, Odlo's strength still lies in its solid foundation: Nordic roots, performance craftsmanship and an enduring passion to push boundaries. Its expertise in base layers also continues to be the brand's superpower – driven by its unrivalled quality coupled with market-leading profitability and best-in-class replenishment capabilities.
In May 2020, Odlo embarked on a new chapter with its acquisition by Monte Rosa Sport (MRS). MRS is owned by Monte Rosa Capital, a privately owned investment firm that invests and supports the development of exciting businesses with a focus on sport, leisure, and health.
MRS has built a portfolio of rich, heritage sport apparel brands with a clear aim: to fuel their performance thanks to the group’s collective scale while nurturing each brand's uniqueness and identity. Alongside Odlo, the group encompasses Janus, the Norwegian-based premium Merino wool producer, and Henri-Lloyd, the iconic British sailing brand.
Each brand remains responsible for its own design, product development, marketing and sales to maintain its unique heritage and identity. However, to drive operational excellence and efficiency, the group benefits from centralised functions, including sourcing and manufacturing, logistics, technology investments and financing.
“We are kind of fabric nerds,” explains Hugo Maurstad, Managing Partner at Monte Rosa Capital. “The founder of Odlo invented technical sports apparel, Janus has knitted wool for 127 years, and the founder of Henri-Lloyd invented taped seams. We continue this heritage but also bring the product developers together with the manufacturing teams to learn how we can make the garments even better. It’s our ‘design-to-cost-and-quality-process’.”
For instance, Odlo now produces its Merino pieces at the Janus manufacturing site, benefitting from their knitting expertise to further elevate the Odlo product. Currently, 61% of the apparel in the MRS portfolio of brands is produced in its own factories in Europe across sites in Norway, Romania and Poland. Direct control of the majority of its manufacturing provides increased flexibility and certainty for the whole group.
Odlo also benefits from MRS’ long-term perspective on its investments. In other words, there are no restrictions on the investment horizon. Furthermore, MRS acts as a daily resource for management – both operationally and financially.
Under MRS’s ownership and vision, each brand will undertake an ambitious growth journey over the next five years, with transformation already well-underway.
With the MRS group foundations in place, 2023 marked the start of a new era for Odlo. A succession of new management appointments and sports partnership agreements underscored the brand’s commitment to re-ignite performance through a renewed focus on brand building.
The most notable appointment was Daniel Eppler, who took over as CEO of MRS on January 1st, 2023. With more than 20 years at Nike, he brought a wealth of industry expertise alongside a clear passion for understanding the core consumer and crafting products centred on their needs and experience. As a multi-activity sportsman – but an especially keen cross-country skier, he was also a great fit with the company’s Nordic sports DNA.
On the sports partnership front, Odlo sought collaborations with like-minded personalities whom it could extend brand awareness with and explore new growth opportunities. In early 2023, legendary biathlete Martin Fourcade was signed as global brand ambassador to represent the brand and act as a product development partner in a four-year agreement. This kicked off a series of further announcements, including the title sponsorship of trail running Team Odlo X-Alpi, the renewal as lead sponsor of the High Trail Vanoise, and the return as the Swiss-Ski’s Nordic team’s outfitter through to 2027.
With the MRS group foundations in place, 2023 marked the start of a new era for Odlo. A succession of new management appointments and sports partnership agreements underscored the brand’s commitment to re-ignite performance through a renewed focus on brand building.
The most notable appointment was Daniel Eppler, who took over as CEO of MRS on January 1st, 2023. With more than 20 years at Nike, he brought a wealth of industry expertise alongside a clear passion for understanding the core consumer and crafting products centred on their needs and experience. As a multi-activity sportsman – but an especially keen cross-country skier, he was also a great fit with the company’s Nordic sports DNA.
On the sports partnership front, Odlo sought collaborations with like-minded personalities whom it could extend brand awareness with and explore new growth opportunities. In early 2023, legendary biathlete Martin Fourcade was signed as global brand ambassador to represent the brand and act as a product development partner in a four-year agreement. This kicked off a series of further announcements, including the title sponsorship of trail running Team Odlo X-Alpi, the renewal as lead sponsor of the High Trail Vanoise, and the return as the Swiss-Ski’s Nordic team’s outfitter through to 2027.
In January 2024, Odlo revealed its new brand strategy, which aims to heighten the outdoor experience by inspiring a reawakening in every athlete. Led by the claim “There’s more out there,” the new direction was launched with the company’s biggest-ever media campaign and fronted by brand ambassador Martin Fourcade.
“Our new muse, whom we’ve dubbed ‘the reawakened athlete,’ is a concept that really transcends across all ages,” said CEO Daniel Eppler. “It defines anyone who has a fresh perspective on what the outdoors means to them. Someone who goes out into nature to train, get re-energised and clear their mind.”
As an elite athlete, Fourcade saw the great outdoors as a place for training and competition, but now he enjoys it for what it is: a place of immense joy and fulfilment. The launch creative saw him pursuing the winter sports he loves while enjoying moments that reward him for venturing out into the wild. The multi-touchpoint digital media campaign included online video and display and digital outdoor and social media activations, achieving over 60 million contacts with winter sports enthusiasts.
The second instalment of the campaign launches this month with a new creative for spring-summer. This time, Fourcade trades skis for sneakers as he continues to seek enriching experiences while enjoying his favourite summer sports.
With the brand committed to long-term awareness building, extending its collaborations with well-aligned partners is a clear priority.
Recent developments include:
- The addition of acclaimed biathletes Selina, Elisa and Aita Gasparin to the ambassador roster. The sisters will feature in the Fall-Winter 2024 marketing campaign.
- The sponsorship of Grinduro, the global gravel event series, kicking off in Hellenthal, Germany on May 24th.
- The launch of a six-part documentary series, “Out for more”, following trail running team Odlo X-Alpi as they chart a new path forward for success on the competitive trail scene.
Designing product that heightens the experience of the reawakened athlete is integral to the brand’s new strategy. Odlo’s Fall-Winter 2024 collection is rooted in the desire to deliver the ultimate in comfort, versatility and longevity, whatever the outdoor pursuit, and is a clear elevation of what has come before.
Inspired by its Norwegian roots and a surge in interest in Nordic sports, the brand has completely redesigned its cross-country apparel.
“The offering in Nordic remained very traditional,” explains Kilian Breuer, Odlo Product Director. “By fusing modern cuts, monochromatic colours and performance wool materials, we’ve created a striking ‘Nordic, like never before’ collection that’s set to heighten the Nordic experience while appealing to a new audience.”
The clean, monochromatic colours also flow into the other categories, creating a powerful new brand aesthetic for the upcoming winter season.
Designing product that heightens the experience of the reawakened athlete is integral to the brand’s new strategy. Odlo’s Fall-Winter 2024 collection is rooted in the desire to deliver the ultimate in comfort, versatility and longevity, whatever the outdoor pursuit, and is a clear elevation of what has come before.
Inspired by its Norwegian roots and a surge in interest in Nordic sports, the brand has completely redesigned its cross-country apparel.
“The offering in Nordic remained very traditional,” explains Kilian Breuer, Odlo Product Director. “By fusing modern cuts, monochromatic colours and performance wool materials, we’ve created a striking ‘Nordic, like never before’ collection that’s set to heighten the Nordic experience while appealing to a new audience.”
The clean, monochromatic colours also flow into the other categories, creating a powerful new brand aesthetic for the upcoming winter season.
The momentum to fuel growth at Odlo is strong on all fronts. Alongside implementing the new brand direction, significant progress is being made against Odlo’s “We can do more” sustainability commitments. The brand is also readying itself to create marketplaces for the future with a clear plan of attack across its four key channels – distributors, key accounts, speciality and digital/online – to deliver ambitious growth over the next five years.
It’s clear that this is just the start of more to come to fully realise the brand’s purpose and commercial potential.
#TheresMoreOutThere.
Swiss performance apparel brand Odlo is launching its second product collaboration with Protect Our Winters (POW) Switzerland, an NGO that raises awareness about the climate crisis. The result is the Odlo x POW Zeroweight running capsule: a six-piece collection made entirely from recycled materials.
Crafted for performance and comfort in all conditions.
Technical performance pieces made to get out there. Purpose-built for cross-country comfort.
