Outdoor Retailer Daily August 9, 2008

All the talk at the show has been about prices inevitably heading up. But Marmot is introducing a new line of technical performance apparel that will cost less – far less – than similar gear.

The key is Marmot’s new 2.5-layer MemBrain Strata, a waterproof/breathable laminate membrane fabric. The half-layer membrane is printed on the inside of the jacket, making it lighter but retaining the advantages of lamination.

Used in Marmot’s men’s Mica and women’s Crystalline jackets, the fabric imparts all the performance of $200-plus jackets for just $130. The half-layer print makes the jacket less clammy than laminated jackets and much lighter (the Crystalline weighs in at a mere six ounces).

“Basically, we can offer the same jacket performance-wise that cost $260 just three years ago, at half the price,” said Brian La Plante, category merchandising manager for Marmot.

The Crystalline beat out 280 entries to win the Outdoor Industry Award at the Outdoor Show in Friedrichshafen, Germany. It’s also turning heads here at OR, displayed in front of the Marmot booth. Marmot has also put the Strata technology in its new Aegis jacket, which sports more features like front zip pockets, but is slightly heavier and retails for $140.