FORWARD MENS OUTERWEAR F/W 2025/26 PREVIEW

Retail Buyers Guide: Mens Outerwear F/W 2025/26 Retail Buyer’s Guide
Brand: Forward
Interviewee: Tony McWilliam. Global Brand Director

How was the men’s snow outerwear market in 2023/24
Difficult for everyone. We’re seeing the results of post-COVID overstock and the repercussions of decisions that were made at that time in the rush to get back to some kind of ‘normalcy’ and hit unrealistic revenue targets result in a market completely flooded with stock. Good for the consumer, bad for brands and retailers. We’ve seen a couple of great business go under in the last six months and I think we’ll see more in the coming 12 to 18 I hate to say. In a way we’re victims of our own success. We’ve spent decades building this global supply chain juggernaut and we’re paying the price. Brands can’t expect to keep doing things the same way and survive. You can’t force December order deadlines onto retailers when the snow hasn’t even hit the ground… but few brands are in the position to make a difference. Fortunately, with our factory as an active stakeholder in our business, we have a lot more flexibility for ordering deadlines, MOQs, production timelines etc and we are one of the few brands with a focus on prioritizing specialty retail above chains or D2C – we believe stores are the nexus for where communities and people come together to celebrate the things they love. We’ve been a part of the global outdoor community for over 30 years, and our experience and insight means we can find better ways of working across every step in the supply chain and retail network to help everyone succeed.

What is the overall theme behind your 2025/26 outerwear range? From which big trends do you take your inspiration?
We’ve always been unique in our ability to pull from our influences across everything from ski, snowboard, skate, bike, street and fashion – and I’m constantly amazed at the creativity of our design and development team to create progressive, technical, functional silhouettes that answer the needs of core skiers and snowboarders who are pushing their sports and inspiring us all.

What new fits / silhouettes are coming out in 2025/26? What pant and jacket styles are most important in your range?
We’re seeing technical features being pushed further into our Catalyst All-Mountain Series which has always represented fantastic versatility, with more relaxed fits and premium fabrics and performance. Our newest product is our Catalyst 3-Layer Shell Jacket and Pant combination which brings a 20,000mm / 20,000gm mechanical stretch recycled-PET fabric with PFC-free DWR fabric to the masses. We’ve always pulled from ski and snowboard to bring the best of both worlds into our range and this looks great, fits great and is an incredible fabric for the price.

What new colour’s / prints are you introducing?
In our best-selling Manifest line we’re introducing a tri-colour block to our Manifest 2-Layer Lined Shell jacket – we love colour blocking but it can look a bit predictable and we’re tired of the kind of ‘North Face retro’ colour block. Lionnel Ducruet our Head of Product just did a fantastic job at finding creative ways to use seams to create dynamic blocking on this item. We’re also really excited about returning to some strong, bold traditional colours which we think it’s time to revive – we’re using a deep blue and a red on our Catalyst line which I’m weirdly excited about.

Any *NEW* technical stories with regards to fabrics and materials?
As we mentioned we’ve worked closely with our decade-old fabric mill to develop a 20k / 20k recycled mechanical stretch 3-layer fabric for the Catalyst line, but we’re also pretty stoked to be introducing a recycled nylon down-proof ripstop into two new models – a down mid-layer for the Catalyst Series which is perfect for an insulation layer under the 3-layer Shell, and a Primaloft Quilted Hoodie in the Manifest line which will quickly become a daily drive to be worn on or off the hill. Nylon is stronger and more durable than PET and we’re hard at work with our mill developing with this material and hope to introduce this into further products in FW26/27 and beyond.

Any trends that your brand is moving away from?
As I mentioned earlier we’re extremely conscious of overstock in the market and how brands and retailers are not working well together at the moment. We don’t chase trends, we find real solutions to industry-wide problems which lead to better relationships and more stability.

Key Products:

Manifest 2L Lined Shell Jacket (Men’s) – EURO 449:
Baton Rouge / Blue Haze / Black A new colourway for our best selling piece.

Catalyst 3L Shell Jacket & Pant (Men’s) – EURO 499:
A more accessible price-point shell jacket with progressive style and colour blocking for all-mountain versatility, the FW25/26 Catalyst 3-layer shell jacket and pant will become an every-day staple for skiers and boarders everywhere. A relaxed fit, generous exterior and interior pockets, YKK Aquaguard zips, 100% seam-sealed, venting, powder-skirt tick all the right functional checkboxes, whilst a 100% recycled super-tough nylon fabric with PFAS-free DWR coating help us reduce our impact. RECYCLED POLYESTER / PLAIN MECHANICAL WEFT STRETCH // W/P 20,000mm – MVP 20,000g/24H // C0 DWR

Catalyst_3L_SHELL_Black-Blue Haze

Catalyst Down Hoodie (Men’s & Women’s) – EURO 249:
Destined to be an instant classic – a modern style lightweight down mid-layer to keep you toasty warm on the hill or off. RECYCLED NYLON 66 DOUBLE-LINE RIBSTOP WEFT MECHANICAL STRETCH // C0 PFC-FREE DWR+PU CLEAR COATING(DOWN PROOF) 800 fill power RDS-certified down

Manifest Quilted Hoodie – EURO 219:
An essential mid-layer for use under our Manifest Series shell jackets, the Manifest Quilted Hoodie will become the item you grab every time you leave the house. Featuring a recycled nylon ripstop with a performance-orientated Primaloft Black Eco insulation that breathes easily whilst keeping you warm. RECYCLED NYLON 66 DOUBLE-LINE RIBSTOP WEFT MECHANICAL STRETCH // C0 PFC-FREE DWR+PU CLEAR COATING (DOWN PROOF) PRIMALOFT®️ Black Insulation Eco 60g/m2