Auclair

Canadian glove specialist | Founded 1945 in Loretteville near Quebec City by Mathieu and Rene Auclair | Known for: alpine race gloves, ski and snowboard mitts, Auclair Dry membranes, GORE TEX models, heated gloves and Powgirl by Auclair | Focus: warmth, dexterity, durable winter construction and athlete tested hand protection for real cold

1945 in Loretteville and the glove factory that learned winter

Auclair is not a ski manufacturer. It is a Canadian glove and mitten specialist with one of the longest winter accessory stories in North American skiing. The brand traces its origin to 1945, when Mathieu and Rene Auclair established a glove factory in Loretteville, near Quebec City, and began producing fashion gloves. That beginning matters because Auclair was built first as a glove maker, not as a logo stretched across unrelated outdoor categories.

As the market changed, the company adapted. In 1960, Auclair moved into specialized snowmobile gloves, responding to the growth of motorized winter travel in Canada. In 1976, Jacques Auclair expanded the product line toward alpine skiing and ski touring, including special two in one gloves for touring use. By then, the factory had grown into a serious winter handwear operation. The brand later passed through Paris Glove in 1989 and Sweden based New Wave Group in 2011, while keeping its Canadian identity and Montreal operational hub. That long path explains why Auclair feels less like a seasonal trend brand and more like a company shaped by decades of cold hands, wet cuffs, race starts and real winter use.

Race SuperFusion, Outseam, Cypress GTX and the modern glove wall

Auclair’s current ski and snowboard collection is built around gloves, mitts, fingermitts and three finger designs. The range covers everyday resort skiers, cold weather riders, racers, juniors, women specific models and working mountain users who need gloves that survive repeated days outside. Models such as Outseam Mitts, Outseam Gloves, Mountain Ops, Icecrusher GTX Warm, Cypress GTX Active, Synergy 2 in 1, Carver Mitt, Quest, Panorama and Son of T show how broad the line has become.

The race side remains one of the clearest technical signatures. Race SuperFusion Gloves and Race SuperFusion Fingermitts sit at the premium end of the collection, while Team Slalom Classic, Race Force and junior race models serve skiers who need pole grip, knuckle protection and warmth while training or standing in cold start zones. For freeride and all mountain users, the logic changes. Riders are less concerned with gate impact and more focused on weather sealing, dexterity, leather durability, powder cuffs and insulation that stays useful when storm skiing turns into chairlift waiting.

Warm hands for skiers who still need to feel the pole

The best Auclair products are built around the constant tradeoff in ski gloves: warmth versus feel. A glove that is warm but bulky can make it hard to tighten buckles, adjust goggles, pull skins, grab poles or operate a camera. A glove that feels precise but runs cold can ruin a day before lunch. Auclair’s role in the market is to give skiers different answers depending on discipline, temperature and hand sensitivity.

Race gloves need to hold the hand securely and protect it from repeated contact. Resort and freeride mitts need to keep fingers warm through long lift rides and wind loaded descents. Touring friendly gloves need enough mobility for transitions, while still offering a warmer option for the descent. Nordic and running gloves sit lower on the warmth scale because high output movement creates heat and sweat. This is where Auclair’s glove specialist identity matters. Rather than treating gloves as an afterthought, the brand builds its range around the different ways skiers use their hands throughout a winter day.

Alex Beaulieu Marchand and the Canadian athlete feedback loop

Auclair’s athlete story is especially relevant for the skipowd.tv audience because it connects the brand to Canadian freeskiing as well as broader outdoor performance. The official athlete roster includes Alex Beaulieu Marchand, known widely as ABM, a Whistler based freeskier with Olympic and X Games medals and a career that moved from competition skiing into big mountain, film and media projects. That kind of athlete gives Auclair feedback from a different world than alpine racing: grabs, landings, bootpacks, cold film days and mixed terrain where dexterity can matter as much as insulation.

Auclair also highlights partnerships with Freestyle Canada, US Ski and Snowboard, Nordiq Canada and other organizations. Those relationships place the brand in front of skiers who use gloves in very different conditions, from mogul courses to cross country training and alpine resort days. In 2025, PSIA AASI also welcomed Auclair as an official supplier, a useful credibility signal because instructors and snow professionals spend far more time outside than the average recreational skier. When a glove brand is used by athletes, coaches and instructors, the feedback loop becomes practical: seams, cuffs, insulation, palms and fit are tested by people who notice small problems quickly.

Quebec cold as the brand laboratory

Auclair’s geography is not just a heritage note. Quebec winter gives the brand a natural testing identity. Long cold snaps, dry air, wet storms, icy mornings, night skiing, snowmobile culture and urban winter life all create different demands on gloves. A product that works in Quebec has to deal with more than a pretty resort photo. It has to keep hands functional when temperatures drop, when leather stiffens, when cuffs fill with snow and when skiers are outside long enough for small weaknesses to become obvious.

That Canadian winter identity also helps explain Auclair’s appeal outside Canada. The brand speaks naturally to skiers in the northern United States, Scandinavia, the Alps and other serious winter zones where gloves are judged by durability rather than hype. For ski media, Quebec has another meaning too: street skiing, night filming and cold urban sessions. Riders and filmers working in that environment need gloves that can handle shoveling, camera handling, rail setups, repeated falls and long waits between attempts. Auclair fits that world because its product language is practical before it is fashionable.

Auclair Dry, GORE TEX and the shift toward cleaner materials

Auclair’s construction story combines leather, textile shells, membranes, insulation and fit shaping. Many ski models use goat leather or other durable leather materials in the palm because leather still gives strong grip, abrasion resistance and a broken in hand feel. Technical membranes in the collection include Auclair Dry variants and GORE TEX options, depending on model and price point. Insulation varies by intended use, with warmer mitts built for cold resort days and thinner gloves designed for high output movement.

The company also presents sustainability as one of its current pillars. Auclair reports that in 2023, 28 percent of its collection incorporated sustainable materials such as recycled fabrics, vegetable tanned leather or certified insulation, with a goal of reaching 75 percent by 2027. It also states that 16 percent of its leather already came from Leather Working Group certified tanneries, with a medium term goal of reaching 100 percent. Those numbers are important because gloves are complex products. They combine leather, insulation, membranes, trims and packaging, so meaningful improvement has to happen across several material layers rather than through a single slogan.

Choosing Auclair by warmth level, glove shape and discipline

The simplest way to choose within Auclair is to start with temperature and activity. Skiers with cold hands, long lift rides or storm day habits should start with mitts or warmer insulated gloves. Mitts usually protect warmth better because fingers share heat inside one chamber. Gloves give better dexterity for buckles, zippers, phones, pole straps and camera work. Three finger and fingermitt designs sit between both worlds, offering more warmth than a glove and more control than a full mitt.

Racers should begin with the race collection and compare protection, cuff shape and palm feel. Resort skiers should look at ski and snowboard models such as Outseam, Icecrusher, Cypress, Mountain Ops, Quest or Carver depending on budget, waterproofing and warmth needs. Touring skiers may prefer a two glove system: a lighter glove for climbing and transitions, plus a warmer glove or mitt for descents and storm exposure. Women who want a dedicated fit and design direction can explore Powgirl by Auclair, while juniors have ski, snowboard and race models scaled for younger hands. The right Auclair is not the most expensive one by default. It is the one that matches your circulation, climate and how often you need your hands free.

Why riders trust a glove brand that stays in its lane

Auclair matters because it has stayed close to one job: keeping hands warm and functional in winter. In a market where many outdoor brands stretch across dozens of categories, Auclair’s focus gives it credibility. Gloves and mitts are small pieces of equipment, but they can decide whether a ski day stays enjoyable or becomes a slow retreat to the lodge. Cold fingers affect pole grip, confidence, reaction time and the simple ability to manage gear.

For riders, Auclair’s value sits in that practical reliability. The brand is not trying to be the loudest name in ski culture, and it is not selling a fantasy of technical innovation disconnected from use. Its strength is the mix of Canadian winter heritage, race room presence, athlete feedback, broad model choice and a growing sustainability push. From Quebec street sessions to cold resort mornings and alpine race starts, Auclair earns its place because warm, durable gloves are not optional. They are the quiet gear that lets skiers keep riding when winter gets serious.