Talent respects talent. It’s why pro basketball players cheer the loudest for Olympic gymnasts, and why Academy Award-winning actors hang out with chart-topping musicians. The best of the best know excellence when they see it.
The team at Gill commands that kind of respect when it comes to protecting boaters from the elements. They knew that when environmental concerns required them (and pretty much everyone else) to stop using polyfluoroalkyl substances to make clothing water-resistant, they needed to collaborate with a company that could play at their level.
“Nikwax, I mean, they’ve been in the business for as long as we have,” says Matt Clark, Gill’s director of product and sustainability. “They’ve been around for 50 years now, so they know what they’re doing. We’re obsessed about fabric development. We’re obsessed about sailing and just kitting people out from the water. They’re the tech nerds when it comes to chemistry. So it was a great meeting of minds.”
The result is Gill’s OS1 Ocean System, which achieves high performance with more eco-friendly materials.
Clark says Gill also worked with cruising sailors in the Arctic to get feedback that was added to customer suggestions. Hence the larger reflective pieces along with oversized zips, cuffs and storm guards for use with cold hands and gloves. This process differs a bit from how Gill works with racing sailors, Clark says: “Quite often they feel obliged to say nice things because they’ve been gifted the kit and it’s part of a bigger sponsorship deal. But from a product development point of view, I want somebody to be really critical.”
The idea, he adds, is to get even the smallest details right. “When you are at sea on those long watches, those are the things that irritate you,” Clark says. “That little scratchy bit of a zip that sits under your chin? That can just start niggling over those hours. It’s those little little bits and pieces we know that can make a difference.”
Take the next step: gillmarine.com
