Buying a down jacket for winter

Consumers should be picky about down jackets, looking beyond price


With the chilly air this week bringing back memories of last year’s harsh winter, it’s time to get a quality down jacket before the freeze sets in. But there is a bewildering choice of jackets available, with prices ranging from 39,000 won ($33.80) to 1.5 million won.

At luxury French brand Moncler and several outdoor brands, down jackets cost over 1 million won. Japanese outdoor brand MontBell’s Eider Down Jumper costs 1.5 million won; U.S. brand The North Face’s goose down Muir Jacket is 1.35 million won; and Japanese sportswear brand Descente Korea’s Mizusawa Duck Down Jacket ― which the company claims is handmade by 100 artisans with the production limited to 30 items per day ― costs around 1 million won.

A PR official from MontBell explained that the jacket is made with the down that Eider ducks, which live in Iceland and Greenland, use to warm their nests for their eggs to hatch.

“Only 2,000 kg is collected each year so the production cost is unavoidably expensive,” said the official.

Considering prices unreasonable, the Fair Trade Commission recently started an investigation into possible price-fixing by big three outdoor brands ― The North Face, Kolon Sports and K2. The high-priced brands have grown rapidly in the past few years.

On the opposite end, though, down jackets cost under 100,000 won. Japanese clothing brand UNIQLO offers an Ultra Light Down Jumper at 99,900 won and E-Mart and Lotte Mart have 59,000 won and 39,000 won jackets, respectively.

In the case of E-Mart and Lotte Mart, especially, such low prices are possible not only because they reduced the retail margin by producing own brand products, but also because they moved fast.

Knowing that the cost of down usually jumps in May and July, as most companies make their purchases then, the retailers bought their materials last winter. And instead of sending the materials to China for production, where labor costs are rising, Lotte Mart headed for Vietnam and E-Mart made their coats in Myanmar.

Experts named several things to consider before purchasing a down jacket, rather than simply looking at the price alone.

It should contain more down (best when over 90 percent) than feathers. The volume of air the soft downy balls capture among themselves decides the warmth. Goose down is generally warmer than duck down, and those from cold regions like Hungary, Poland and Siberia are considered the best.

The larger the fill power ― the maximum volume of 28 grams of down measured after it was pressed for 24 hours and then released ― the warmer the jacket. Experts say that 600 to 700 fill power is good enough for everyday wear.

Check if the outer fabric is sturdy enough. No matter how good the down inside is, it is of no use if it leaks out. Korea Apparel Testing & Research Institution gives the GD (Gold Down) mark to clothes that pass its qualification test.

By Park Min-young (claire@heraldcorp.com)