The Evolution of Mountain Style

How Max Leonard and Henry Iddon documented almost five decades of British outdoor clothing and why it matters to you.

Photo Credit: Isola Press

Mountain Style, published in November last year, is the first book of its kind that meticulously documents the extensive history of British mountain wear. The book delves into the evolution of countless brands, such as Mountain Equipment, Berghaus, Peter Storm, Sprayway, Rohan, G&H, Calange, Vango, Rab, Karrimor and many more. Mountain Style was written by Max Leonard and Henry Iddon, in memory of Hamish Hamilton, the inventor of Pertex who then founded Buffalo in the 80’s. He sadly passed away in March last year. He designed the Force 10 Orange tent for Vango and, through his numerous achievements, he was one of many who transformed the landscape of the British outerwear industry.

Max explains,

‘I began thinking about the book at a crucial time, when the founders were all getting pretty old and some were passing away’. 

Instead he spoke to Trudi Hamilton, Hamish’s wife, who told Max all about the evolution of the Pertex fabric concept and how the brand was born. Max says,‘I believe it’s essential to get these kinds of stories recorded before they’re lost in the passing of time’.

Having previously written a book titled, The Rough-Stuff Fellowship Archive about the world's oldest off-road cycling club, Max says, ‘It struck me that what they wore was very close to traditional outdoor clothing – woolly jumpers and breeches, Ventile cotton jackets – and that the outdoor companies would have similar archives that would tell a fascinating story of a corner of British social history and outdoor culture’. While Henry explains, ‘Mountaineering has always been a big interest of mine’, and he worked a Saturday job in an outdoor shop in Blackpool in the 80’s when the industry was booming. ‘In the early 80’s, when I was in secondary school, I was unusual as I was into the outdoors and would spend weekends hiking’, and together Henry and Max took these threads and began the long journey documenting the history of British outdoor wear - Mountain Style.

Out of all the brands that Mountain Style features, Max reckons Bergahaus, Mountain Equipment and Rohan were the three most transformative. He explains, ‘Berghaus was the first to use Gore-Tex, which was huge, and they were at the front of the crossover to streetwear’.

‘By 1973, Berghaus - the distribution company - was thriving, bringing brands including Scarpa, Stubai, Atomic and Nordica into the UK. It had also, by this point, begun producing its own goods. The first product was a basic polythene tube tent, put together in a room above the shop. Next were rucksacks. Gordon Davison and Peter Lockey [Berghaus founders] had seen Karrimor’s success in this market and - knowing the importance of a good pack, as well as the relative lack of options available - took rooms in Cathedral Buildings across the road where, on just a couple of machines, they were making packs for sale in the shop’. - Mountain Style p154

Max and Henry interviewed Peter Lockey for the book, who spoke all about how the company grew, ‘For many years Gordon and I had got into a regular routine on a Wednesday afternoon and evening, going out into the hills, usually the Cheviots or the Lake District, with the latest prototype designs of [Berghaus] rucksacks and outdoor clothing, subjecting the gear to extreme tests, in an effort to highlight leakages, tears and durability. We would also carry out the same testing over several days on Scottish Munros, Alpine ascents, high-level routes with skis and climbing gear. We would return to the Design Room with our test results so that any problems were ironed out and products were improved ready for new rounds of testing’. - Mountain Style p157

‘Gore-Tex rainwear launched in January 1976 after extensive lab testing, with the first field tests held in March that year to pinpoint any remaining weaknesses. These tests involved ‘qualified experts’ from different sports (and the building industry), and some of the sailing, mountaineering and skiing tests took place in the UK.

Berghaus has long claimed to be the first company to bring Gore-Tex garments to the UK market, in 1977. Gordon Davison had met Robert - now ‘Bob’ - Gore in the US and had signed a deal to launch Gore-Tex in Europe. Mountain Equipment released some Gore-Tex jackets around that time, but ultimately the company did not get very involved in the new technology, preferring to stick to insulation’. - Mountain Style p161 

Max mentioned Mountain Equipment as a transformer of the industry for this very reason, Mountain Equipment was the most successful brand in bringing Down insulation into the outdoor clothing industry. Oxford University drop-out, Peter Hutchinson, was a keen climber who set up a climbing shop in Manchester in the late 50’s. He would get sleeping bags from European manufacturers, whilst on climbing trips, and sell them in his shop. The early duvets, essentially sleeping bag jackets, weren’t well fitting so Peter would chop them up to make down jackets cheaply.

‘Hutchinson did, however, have a real talent when it came to down. He was, according to Peter Elliott [who worked and climbed with Hutchinson in later years], the first clothing (rather than sleeping bag) manufacturer to use box-wall construction, eliminating cold spots where baffles were sewn right through the garment; this was as early as 1962’. - Mountain Style p76

And once Ellis Brigham placed an order for one hundred sleeping bags Mountain Equipment was born, or as Max says, ‘The UK’s first real down clothing company’. It’s fascinating to think that the down jackets we see everyone wearing for outdoor or just everyday fashion, started in this way, and that's why Mountain Style is such an important documentation of this often overlooked history. ‘A down jacket is no longer “outdoor” clothing, it's ubiquitous’, Max explains.

Talking of casual clothing and this crossover between the outdoor and everyday markets Max continues, ‘Rohan really pushed fabric technology and design in the 1970s/80s and they pretty much invented the casual/travel clothing market’. Rohan was born in a small terraced house in Skipton and the brand’s success came not just from the clothing but what the clothes embodied,

Henry explains,

‘Rohan were seen as outsiders and somewhat rebellious in their innovative approach to marketing’.

‘With a name taken from a fictional kingdom in Tolkein’s Middle-earth, Rohan announced itself from the outset as different. And in its openness to innovation, its provocative marketing and its overall attitude, it shook up the sometimes parochial British outdoor clothing scene. It was founded by Paul and Sarah Howcroft, a young husband-and-wife team, in 1974. Paul, a former chemist, had spent a year working for a weaver, learning about fabrics and studying garment design and fittings like zips before they took the plunge’. 

‘Rohan labeled itself ‘For Outsiders’, and from the start its minimal, clean aesthetic, use of colour and focus on light weight and new fabrics set it apart - as well as a certain attitude to the rest of the outdoor trade, which it viewed as sclerotic’. - Mountain Style p120

From their controversial philosophy and outdoor chic designs to their catwalk shows and genius marketing, Rohan’s 1980’s ‘Bags’ trousers which weighed 300g and could be packed to the size of a cola can, established not just the brand but the foundations of the UK travel clothing market.

Both Max and Henry began working on Mountain Style in 2018, making it a 6 year process all the way to publishing. Henry describes, ‘It was a monumental job - some contacts were easy to find while others took some digging, and then led on to others. On a personal level it was amazing to sit down and speak to some of the individuals, who in their day were at the absolute pinnacle of world mountaineering - in a sense it was like meeting your heroes!’ The book's list of acknowledgments is extensive as the pair had to speak to as many people as possible to achieve such an in-depth depiction of all the stories. When asked about their favourite interviews, Henry mentions Martyn Boysen, ‘One of the ‘big hitters’ of 70’s mountaineering’, who was a member of the 1975 Everest South-West Face expedition and worked closely with Peter Hutchinson of Mountain Equipment. Boysen described the first Mountain Equipment store, ‘The whole place was just full of floating bits of bloody feathers and down and stuff, and stank to high heaven’. - Mountain Style p76

Both Max and Henry agreed that meeting Rab Carrington was a highlight of the process, Rab was a mountaineer and rock climber in the 70’s/80’s who began his, soon to be widely recognised, outerwear brand Rab in 1981 in Sheffield. Like Peter Hutchinson, he began making sleeping bags and would later redefine the future of down sleeping bags. Max says, ‘My favourite interview was maybe with Rab Carrington of Rab. He was an incredible mountaineer and then founded and ran his company in an inspiring way’. Henry agrees,

‘It was great to meet Rab Carrington who really took an idea from humble beginnings to a large company all in a very down to earth way’.

In Mountain Style there’s a fantastic photo of Henry wearing an original Kinder Rab jacket while on an expedition in Alaska in 1988. He tells me, ‘I was only 19 at the time and the world was a different place - no emails / mobile phones / digital cameras etc. I also had a ski mountaineering trip to Iran 10 years ago which was amazing’. There is such a rich history of mountaineering and so much has gone into the outdoor wear brands that we all wear today. Thanks to Henry and Max, the crazy adventures and personal stories behind these founding brands will live on for generations to come. Henry remarks, ‘While never leaving a mark in the mountaineering annals for any new routes or ground breaking expeditions, I’d like to think we’ve left a mark and produced something with a lasting legacy with Mountain Style’. And that is exactly what the pair have done.