Haglöfs
Standard Issue Black
Standard Issue Black is a new standard presented by Haglöfs and Polartec: A structural change for the better. A shared black, pre-dyed at scale, and available to the whole industry.
Challenge
Every year, outdoor brands order countless rolls of fleece in almost identical shades of black. Each shade demands its own dye process, which fragments production and quietly multiplies environmental impact across the industry. It is a problem hiding in plain sight, and one that no single brand could solve alone. The variation is unnecessary, yet the industry has long accepted it as normal.
Solution
Haglöfs and Polartec developed Standard Issue Black: a shared black fleece, pre-dyed at scale and made available to the entire outdoor industry. It is a structural change for the better with no qualitative downside. One standard cuts duplication, simplifies sourcing, saves time and reduces impact, not just for one brand but for everyone willing to adopt it.
Results
To make the invisible visible, the collaboration also produced The Black Capsule: an R&D study constructed from leftover fleece in three nearly identical shades of black. Each garment is physical proof of the unnecessary variation the industry has long accepted as normal. Standard Issue Black itself stays open to the whole industry to adopt.
