When you think that of Canada Goose, you almost certainly picture the fur-trimmed parka that’s the brand’s trademark, designed to maintain people warm in subzero temperatures.
But today, the $1.5 billion winter apparel company’s logo can actually be found on sneakers, T-shirts, socks and more. “We’re not just making outerwear anymore,” says CEO Dani Reiss Assets.
Soon you’ll even find a way to purchase Canada Goose for your private home.
But the leap from the secure clothing retail sector – the realm by which the brand has operated since 1957 – into the highly competitive home goods market is a dangerous one, experts say. Assets.
The rapid expansion of Canada Goose
Since taking the helm of his grandfather’s company in 2001, Reiss has built Canada Goose from relative obscurity into a world brand with 68 stores around the globe, including in sweltering locations like Miami and Australia.
“We started with lightweight down in 2011 and used our reputation for extreme warmth to target this new category,” explains Reiss.
Since then, the corporate has increasingly focused on the clothing sector: the primary knitwear collection hit stores in 2017, followed by the shoe collection in 2021.
According to Reiss, lightweight down products now account for nearly half of Canada Goose’s sales, so it is simple to see why the corporate desires to proceed the success it’s experienced outside of parkas into eyewear, luggage and even home goods.
However, this shouldn’t be a guaranteed easy win for the brand, say marketing experts.
Marketing agency Live & Breathe has worked with retailers similar to Morrisons, Real Techniques and World Duty Free for many years to launch campaigns and brand extensions.
As Chief Strategy Officer Ben Alalouff points out, all of Canada Goose’s previous product launches – from mountain climbing boots to lightweight vests – have reflected the brand’s core message of being outdoors and wearing Canada Goose.
“When you’re at home, you don’t necessarily think of Canada Goose,” he says. “You look at the website, you look at social media, and it’s all about high-quality outerwear. It’s not about having a cozy or high-quality home… It’s being built from scratch, so that could be a problem.”
The other elephant within the room is that many individuals spend numerous money on Canada Goose since it is a premium product. If the brand moves into recent categories to extend its profits, that would devalue the brand.
Julio Hernandez, head of KPMG’s global client advisory practice, tells Assets that “there are countless companies out there that have tried this and have not been successful.”
“We used to have a very famous brand here in the United States, a brewery called Schlitz,” he emphasizes.
In the Nineteen Seventies, Schlitz’s owners tried to reformulate the recipe to scale back production costs and meet increasing demand. “Almost overnight, they lost their following,” Hernandez says.
Likewise, consumers who spend money on Canada Goose expect a certain level of quality.
“If you go to their website, they’ll tell you the temperature resistance, etc. There’s a certain science behind it – you think, ‘Oh man, these guys really know what they’re doing,'” adds Hernandez.
“Is that ‘they really know what they are doing’ [going to] into a new cup? I don’t know.”
Canada Goose desires to be like Apple
Canada Goose declined to disclose which homewares might be released. The previously released limited edition Heavy blankets could function a clue.
“Canada Goose probably has enough experience to make a small move,” says Alalouff, adding that picnic accessories, blankets and candle holders would link the brand new indoor collection to the corporate’s existing fame in outerwear.
“Take that small step rather than making the big leap and saying, ‘OK, we’re a homewares brand now.’ You’re not, you’re an outdoor brand,” he adds. “Test the waters and over time you’ll play a bigger role in your customers’ lifestyles.”
Be that as it could, Canada Goose’s CEO shouldn’t be concerned about diluting the brand as the corporate expands into home goods, eyewear, winter wear, luggage and more.
“I think about it, but I’m not worried,” Reiss says. “The reason I’m not worried is because I look at other brands in the world and some of the strongest brands in the world are much, much bigger than us.”
Instead of considering like a fashion brand, he tells Assets He draws inspiration from corporations like Rolex, Range Rover and Apple.
“These are the types of brands I look at that are big and that are not in my industry, not in our industry,” explains the 50-year-old manager, adding that they’re “great examples of how to build a brand properly.”
“We became a pioneer in what we do by doing our own thing. We chose to continue to manufacture in Canada when everyone else in Canada – even in North America and in many cases Europe – was leaving the West to manufacture in low-cost environments… That decision made us the company we are today. That’s why I look at brands outside of that space as well.”
And even after greater than 20 years on the helm of Canada Goose, Reiss emphasizes that he still sees the brand’s growth “in generations, not quarters.”
Ultimately, nonetheless, Alalouff warns that brands that think too far ahead could suffer an early grave.
“Strategically, if you’re a cool brand and you have enough buy-in, you can do whatever you want,” he argues. “But to think that you’re going to have such an incredibly large impact on someone’s life, unless you’re a company like Apple, is a tough sell.”
“Once a brand starts to see itself as more than just something useful in a consumer’s life and starts to see itself as something that is always important, then it starts to think a little too much of itself and starts to get into trouble.”
