Fusalp x Colette

In the 1960s and ‘70s, Fusalp was the go-to skiwear brand of the athletic and fabulous. This week, the iconic label is making a comeback with a new line sold at Colette in Paris. Because a fire in the early 1980s destroyed most of the company’s archives, the new design team had to work from vintage catalogues, eBay finds, and images of style icons like Brigitte Bardot wearing the original pieces to recreate the long, lean aerodynamic skiwear of yesteryear with a contemporary twist. The resulting capsule collection includes a slim-cut turtleneck sweater covered with snowflake silhouettes, a down jacket with an embroidered logo, and a revamped take on the classic “fuseau” ski pant. “Fusalp’s fuseau gave the French ski team a few tenths of a second advantage back then,” says Philippe Lacoste, who acquired a majority stake in the brand this year with his sister Sophie. He has fond memories of wearing Fuseau on family trips to Gstaad in the ‘70s. “The elegant silhouette was developed when so many people in France were taking their first family ski vacations and really wanted to dress up for the slopes,” he says. “It was a real revolution.”