Canada Goose is no stranger to collaborations, and the Canadian brand certainly has a solid hand for picking noteworthy collaborators. After projects with the Union and BAPE, Canada Goose enlists three emerging designers to help kick off its new series, the Hood Trim Collective.
Canada Goose's Hood Trim Collective tasks the designers with reimagining its iconic pieces for limited edition capsules. And yes, these collections will include — you guessed it — Canada Goose's interchangeable Hood Trims.
Canada Goose's new initiative is rooted in self-expression while preserving the weather-protection qualities of its offerings. Not to mention, the label is casting a big spotlight on new-generation talent to do what they do best: create cool, thoughtful pieces.
To kick off the series, Canada Goose tapped bubbling names Collina Strada, Thebe Magugu, and Mira Mikati to lend their distinct visions to the label's Shelburne Parka, Mystique Parka, and Chilliwack Bomber, respectively.
The results? Canada Goose's inaugural Hood Trim Collective presents eco-friendly outerwear and Hood Trims sprinkled with the essence of each designer. For instance, Collina Strada offers up jackets with hand-drawn florals and cat-eared Hood Trims, speaking to the brand's environmental-friendliness and frequent animal themes (in case you forgot about the FW23 runway show).
In honor of the collective's launch, we caught up with Thebe Magugu and Collina Strada's Hillary Taymour to discuss collaborating with Canada Goose for its new Hood Trim series.
Why Canada Goose?
Collina Strada (Hillary Taymour): I haven’t worked with outerwear on a large scale like this and have always been interested in designing outerwear styles. So when Canada Goose approached me for this partnership, I immediately jumped on it. Working with a brand like Canada Goose, which has a strong history and experience in high-quality and well-crafted apparel and accessories, and has made significant strides in the sustainability space over the years, really aligns with my brand ethos and mission.
Thebe Magugu: When looking at any brand partnerships, I always want to align myself with a brand with similar values and design aesthetics. Canada Goose is such a recognizable and iconic brand that is known for its quality in design, execution, and function — all values that I look for and see in my own designs. Anything I create should be used to assist us, not impair us, and to allow us to navigate through life efficiently while looking our best.
What's your personal experience (if any) with the company prior to this partnership?
Collina Strada: As a designer working in the industry, I’ve been familiar with the Canada Goose brand and have seen some of the other brand collaborations they’ve done over the years, many with brands and designers I know and admire. I’m excited to be a part of the Canada Goose family and work alongside the team and two other incredibly talented designers for this collective.
Thebe Magugu: Many of the brands I keep an eye on, from Junya Watanabe to Y/Project, have had capsules with Canada Goose, so I have always been aware and admired from afar. It has been a pleasure to interact with the product physically and expose myself to the technology and quality that Canada Goose strives for. It's collaborations I seek out, ones that allow me to fully inject my universe but also allow me to take learnings into my own brand as well.
How'd you select the garment styles you've elected to work on?
Collina Strada: I choose to work with one of Canada Goose's most iconic silhouettes, the Shelburne Parka because it has a significant amount of sustainable and eco-friendly materials like the luxe performance satin material and nylon lining made from 100% recycled polymide, as well as CloudTH down-alternative Insulation made from 100% recycled polyester which is an innovative down-alternative insulation. With everything I design at Collina Strada, I always look at ways to incorporate as many sustainable elements as possible, and this parka already has so many of those properties that I would look for!
Thebe Magugu: Canada Goose is known for its performance and functional silhouettes, and the Mystique Parka is considered a mediation between form and function, much like my own designs. Its full-length silhouette offers maximum protection in harsh environments. Also, it allows for more creativity and room to showcase my culture and heritage through the prints seen on the parka.
How does the finished product fit into your own worldview as a designer?
Collina Strada: The prints and patterns on the "Be Me Shelburne Parka" are a unique take on my typical, bright, and colorful designs for Collina Strada that many expect from me. I wanted to tone it down and create a parka with my hand-drawn artwork on the outer shell, but with prints and patterns that are too in your face and don't translate well year after year. In an effort to reduce consumption and lessen our footprint on the planet, I want the wearer to have this parka in their wardrobe for years to come.
Thebe Magugu: As a brand that values and practices cultural honor, novelty, and uncompromising quality, I needed my values to be seen clearly and boldly throughout this collaboration. I looked at the modern vision of my Sotho culture and expressed that vision through a celebratory motif print of "Poone" (Corn on the Cob), representing abundance, prosperity, and wealth. The motif is seen throughout the Lesotho and the Sotho culture, and I wanted to introduce it to younger generations through the heirloom Mystique Parka.
Your brand is informed directly by traditional craft. What was your process for applying those historic techniques to cutting-edge Canada Goose outerwear?
Thebe Magugu: It was more about invoking the silhouette and imposing the color to achieve the "homage" of the look of the Basotho blanket. I have very fond memories of my own uncles looking incredibly regal in their long-line Basotho blankets, which covered their shoulders and draped down past their knees, acting like such a beautiful canvas to show off the traditional print. This has been translated to adorn the Mystique Parka, which — like the silhouette my uncles donned — is also long-line, allowing the print to shine and show itself off within the context of a high-performance coat.
Can you talk us through the process of designing and applying the prints to the Canada Goose pieces?
Collina Strada: These were hand-drawn prints that are an ode to the prints you’d see on many of the Collina Strada pieces, just an update on the colors and abstract shapes. The Plaid Maple is a hand-drawn floral design that is an homage to Canada, while the Basically Floral print is dramatic with black satin and a burst of pink abstract prints.
What does it mean to you to apply cat ears to a hood?
Collina Strada: The Fuzzy Hood Trim is a fun and playful touch to the "'Be Me Shelburne Parka"' and something I had fun creating. It incorporates sustainable materials like 87% recycled and Sorona and 13% recycled polyester while keeping the wearer warm and protected from the elements.
There are plenty of design cues I can imagine you drawing from here: what's your specific inspiration?
Collina Strada: I didn't have one specific inspiration or vision when I went into designing the 'Be Me Shelburne Parka' and designing the prints on the shell. I pulled references from my previous designs for Collina Strada, especially the prints, so the parka reflects my brand identity. I really wanted these styles to be timeless and ones that can transcend beyond one season and become a wardrobe staple that is both unique and inspirational.
Can you speak to the historic impact of the Basotho blanket that you utilized as design inspiration?
Thebe Magugu: My mission is personal: showcase my heritage and culture through a fiercely modern attitude so that generations across the board may be informed and exposed to it — especially the Basotho Blanket, which is my culture's source of pride. I am also from the camp of African artists who believe in the modernization of culture — where critical parts of it are transcribed into new-age disciplines and practices, which will allow the original to never be forgotten or discarded, but for it to come along with us in our ever-changing world.
