Why people are breaking the law to get their hands on a Canada Goose luxury parka
- Retailer produces heavy-duty down jackets which are renowned for their warmth
- The brand does its bit for polar bears, but gets flak for the geese it slaughters
Toronto-based Canada Goose is suffering against the backdrop of a wider US-China trade dispute as its share price has fallen from C$90 (US$67.7) in December to C$65 soon after the luxury Canadian retailer opened its first Chinese store in Beijing.
Here are four facts about a retailer known for its down jackets.
1. Ontario’s police used to be its best clients
In 1957, Polish emigrant Sam Tick founded Metro Sportswear, the precursor to Canada Goose, after working at garment factories as a cutter. His speciality was winter gear such as snowmobile suits, and he outfitted Canadian rangers and Ontario’s provincial police with heavy duty parkas.
Although Boston-based Bain Capital became majority shareholder in 2013, Canada Goose remains committed to garments made exclusively in its Toronto and Winnipeg plants.
2. People are breaking the commandments for these jackets
During Chicago’s coldest winter in decades, six people were robbed at gunpoint of their Canada Goose parkas in the past two weeks in a city with a 1,000 square-metre flagship shop in North Michigan.
London saw a smash and grab raid of its Regent Street store soon after it opened, as 10 thieves on five mopeds broke the shop front glass and sped off with parkas in November 2017.