The Mons Royale booth at ISPO 2019

Hamish Acland, Mons Royale Founder and CEO

Following our tenth ISPO, I am now travelling back to NZ. Unlike our first time at the tradeshow (which was a complete failure), this year was a total success. The stand and product looked amazing and we had a constant stream of visitors. Props go to our European team who made it all happen seamlessly (including owning the dancefloor at the K2 party). Next stop on my travels was Innsbruck Austria, where we have our European offices. We spent a couple of days catching up and talking about future product. Then, we capped off the meeting by skiing at a local resort called Schlick 2000. Out of three weeks on the road, I skied just one day; not the best ratio. I traveled with all the necessary gear, including my backcountry set up, for just one day. Ironically, this excludes the long-sleeve baselayer top that I forgot to pack.

Which segues somewhat in to how this whole thing began.

Whether it’s for a weekend, a week or a season, the key question when you travel for skiing or snowboarding is how to maximise your adventure while packing with limited space. Over years of travelling to competitions, shoots and surfing friends’ couches to chase the snow, I asked myself this question a lot. Skis, boots, outerwear and my backcountry kit would get packed first. Then the washables; socks, underwear and baselayers. Finally, some clothes for downtown would fill out the bag. As I was a Kiwi travelling to the Northern Hemisphere for an entire winter, my problem was exaggerated. I’m talking four months living out of two bags and carrying two pairs of skis. Bindings in my hand luggage and skis boots as a carry-on – or ready to be worn on the plane if refused. Because of this need to pack less, I valued items I could wear both on-mountain and off. For example, I had a puffy jacket for those really cold days on the mountain and I also wore it downtown. I realized there was a gap when it came to baselayers. The majority of the brands offered synthetic options. But even when they added some anti micro-bacterial wash, it would still stink after a couple of days’ use. Then there was the merino option from the outdoor brands. They outperformed the synthetics and you could essentially wear them for days on end without stink. On top of that, the merino layering had far lower impact on the planet than the chemical-based synthetics. The problem was, the majority of the merino baselayers on the market were essentially boring. The products were typically black, conservative and designed for an older clientele.  

Mons Royale came from believing we could build a brand by designing technical performance products without compromising style.

Sustainability was at the heart of  our product design ethos, but we aimed to connect with fans through the sports and culture we loved. Ten years later and we have successfully grown a global fan base, including some of the world’s best athletes. We’ve also extended our product line beyond underwear and baselayers to include technical apparel for skiers, snowboarders, mountain bikers and all their adventures in between. Back to forgetting my baselayer top for my one day of skiing at Schlick 2000. Instead, I wore a short-sleeve Mons merino t-shirt. I had packed five for my trip and at first glance, many would have thought that they were simply cotton tees with a print. The merino tee I chose worked perfectly for the hike to get freshies, as well as the hot laps grabbing pockets of powder and playing chase through the natural halfpipes. It also worked at the end of the day, as we enjoyed a beer overlooking the Austrian Alps to cap off our tenth ISPO trip. That’s the beauty of merino and the idea that inspired Mons Royale. Pack less, do more and value your time spent in the mountains.   Written by: Hamish Acland Photos: Thomas Gruner and Neil Kerr