Fjällräven Greenland: An iconic collection

It was originally in the 1960s, when outdoor clothing was not as functional as it is today, its shortcomings became clear during the Scandinavian Greenland Expedition of 1966, where, interestingly, Fjällräven supplied the backpacks and new revolutionary thermo tents. After returning home, the expedition members had in-depth discussions about outdoor equipment and clothing with Fjällräven’s founder Åke Nordin, who then started thinking about producing a jacket and a pair of trousers for outdoor use.

From that, Åke made a climbing jacket from a specially developed fabric that had proven to be too heavy for his lightweight tents, and this was the very first Fjällräven garment. The jacket was tested during a mountain trek, and the fabric had exactly the properties Åke was looking for in outdoor clothing: it was light, extremely strong, and dried quickly. The only change needed was the fabric’s moisture resistance. Åke remembered how, as a boy, together with friends at the ski jump in his hometown of Örnsköldsvik, he had taken to not only waxing his skis for a better glide but also “waxing” the seat of his pants to keep himself dry.

Åke experimented with a mixture of beeswax and paraffin, which he applied to the fabric with his wife’s hairdryer, and it worked! The wax made the fabric both water-resistant and windproof and even more durable. From all of this, one of the outdoor world’s most durable fabrics was born, and Åke named it G-1000, the G being for Greenland. The wax was called Greenland Wax, and the jacket was launched in 1968 as the Greenland Jacket, which remains a significant favourite in outdoor wardrobes to this day.

Over half a century after Åke Nordin designed the original Greenland Jacket, G-1000 fabric and Greenland Wax are more appreciated than ever, with later additions including the Keb Trousers and Keb Jacket, which were awarded international prizes for both functionality and environmental qualities.

In the true spirit of Åke, Fjällräven has continued to develop the G-1000 fabric, which is now available in several versions. They all share the benefits of the original, but each also has its own specific properties.

Today, the Greenland family has grown organically, with new collections of clothing, backpacks, and even more accessories introduced each season, all complementing each other while fundamentally respecting the spirit of its inventor… Åke Nordin.

Shop our collection of Fjallraven Greenland.