top of page

Kith x Moncler Is the Winter Style Flex That'll Also Keep You Warm

Jake Woolf

The brand behind fashion's most popular down jacket teams with NYC streetwear label Kith on a new capsule collection.

Earlier this month, Moncler announced that it would no longer be showing its two runway collections—Moncler Grenoble and Moncler Gamme Bleu—in the process severing ties with Gamme Bleu's designer (and shrunken suit god) Thom Browne. In a statement, Moncler's chief executive Remo Ruffini explained, "The group must vary and open up towards different horizons." And right now, opening up towards different horizons means producing a new collaboration with NYC's most collab-happy streetwear label: Ronnie Fieg's Kith.

The collection first debuted as part of Kith's massive 100+ look runway show in September, which saw the likes of Scottie Pippen and LeBron James hit the catwalk, and featured collaborations with Nike, Champion, Adidas, Off-White, and of course Moncler. From what we could tell then, Kith x Moncler was full of new takes on Moncler's signature puffy jackets. But in addition to the classics, the full range of gear consists of logo-heavy sweaters, T-shirts, hoodies, hats, and even footwear, in the form of a hiking boot and a sneaker (itself the rare triple collab: a winterized take on Fieg's all-time favorite model, the Asics Gel Lyte 3).

The collaboration doesn't seem obvious at first glance. Moncler has been embraced by the streetwear community over the past decade, but for the most part presents itself as a European luxury brand in the truest, multi-comma sense: its products are priced far higher than most of what Kith sells. But for Kith founder Ronnie Fieg, that's exactly what made the collaboration desirable. "It is the most top-tier outerwear brand when it comes down to materials, construction, and style. When you think of most pinnacle cold-weather product, Moncler sits above the rest," Fieg says. And Fieg's penchant for creating massive hype around releases might make perfect sense for a brand looking for its next move.

As far as we're concerned, the piece that makes the best case for the collaboration is the pony hair hiking boot. Fieg calls it a "top 5 hiking boots of all time," and though we might not go quite that far just yet, we understand why he feels so strongly. The boots are made in Italy, use top-line Italian leathers, and and are lined with genuine shearling to the toe. (According to Fieg, that "is something the brand has never done before with this silhouette.") Even the more traditional colorways come jam-packed with details, but if you're going to rock Kith x Moncler boots, we think you ought to go full "Streetwear God in Gstaad" and opt for the leopard-print pony hair versions.

Fieg's own favorite piece in the offering is what's called the Lachat down hoodie, a pullover style that could turn heads in New York and also keep a man warm in outer space. He explains that the hoodie represents Kith's next big step. "While all the pieces in the collection showcase both brand’s DNA, the Lachat really reflects the direction we’re headed as a brand," he says. And what direction is that, exactly? "The evolution of a hooded pullover. It’s a silhouette designed through our lens that feels unique while still sitting cohesively within a timeless collection," he says. And if one thing is for sure, it's that Kith's evolution, expansion, and furthere innovations in pullover fashions will continue in 2018.

The Kith x Moncler collection will be available starting December 2, with a second drop December 9 at Kith

bottom of page