Luxury brand Fay’s outerwear proves its worth in a Norwegian glacier
We set off almost at sea level, under a low, iron-grey sky and in piercing cold, strapping on snowshoes to climb toward a natural ice cave higher up in the mountains. As we prepare to leave, French glaciologist Léo Decaux quietly reaches into the back of the car and lifts out a rifle. In Svalbard, when you head into the wilderness, you are advised never to go unarmed – polar bears roam these landscapes.
The rifle is there mostly as a deterrent, a reminder that in this part of the world, nature still sets the rules. Decaux speaks about climate change not as an abstract debate, but as something tangible and immediate. Svalbard is one of those places where global heating is not a theory but a visible fact. ‘The ice is retreating – I see it with my own eyes, every single day,’ he says. ‘The implications are vast: nearly 40 per cent of the world’s population lives along coastlines. Even a rise in sea level of just a few centimetres would carry enormous consequences.
’Decaux has lived in the Norwegian archipelago for 11 years, and we have come to observe him on the Larsbreen glacier, which he is studying. His job requires him to spend hours in harsh conditions and it is for this reason that he’s been chosen by Fay, maker of jackets that trace their origins to American workwear, to field-testone of the brand’s new models – a padded, quilted down jacket made from nylon and cotton canvas, with large pockets and a zip fastening.
Léo Decaux wears Fay’s 4Ganci down jacket in nylon and cotton canvas, £1,480
Fay is now Italian, but the 4 Ganci (“fourhooks”) style of its signature product is heir to those worn by firefighters and fishermen in the US. The brand originated in Maine, but back in 1987 was acquired by brothers Diego and Andrea Della Valle, who had a thing about practical American design, having already started Tod’s, a shoe business inspired by driving shoes.
Since then, Fay has been adopted by Italians and has had its fair share of international celebrity fans too – Bradley Cooper and Matt Damon to name a couple – but it has never lost the grit that defines its DNA. The 4 Ganci, at its root, is a style designed for work, even if today that’s more likely to be behind a desk than in a boat yard. However, Decaux is without doubt in the field, putting his Fay jacket to the test and observing the awesome power of the natural world. ‘Living here, you learn to respect nature: it reminds you of your limits, day after day,’ he says.
