Meet Colin Meredith: designer, maker and relentless tinkerer. He doesn't chase trends—he tunes details. We caught up to talk tools, one-off builds, how it all comes together and what we can hope for in anticipation of his FW25 collection. 

UT: Colin, you have quite the resume! It's like a who's-who of iconic Canadian lifestyle brands. In particular, your time at Arc’teryx seemed to inform quite a lot of your work.

CM: Yeah! I’ve been fortunate to learn from some of the best in the business. Most people don’t consider Canada a destination for fashion, but we have a surprising number of noteworthy brands and creatives.
Arc’teryx was one of many great stops along the way for me. In my technical apparel college program, Arc’ was the holy-grail of outdoor performance design, so we spent time studying and reverse-engineering product. Naturally this engrained themes into my work and certain processes that I learned there have left a lasting impression.
Some of the earliest CM styles feel quite similar in theme to Arc’ but I’d point anyone to the “archive looks” section of my website. There you’ll see the breadth of work and influences which came before my time at Arc.

UT: Do you think growing up on Vancouver Island (we only just learned where that is!) sent you down that path at an early age?

CM: Growing up on the island was hugely influential on my taste and desire for functional products. Coastal BC can be a rugged and unforgiving environment, though very beautiful. Having things that work become more important in a place like that. 

UT: What was the first piece of clothing to inspired you?

CM: That’s a tough one. The first piece which I tried to replicate by hand was a shirt from Engineered Garments. It was a chambray button-down, and I tried to make my own version of it. After months I eventually succeeded, and the result was very badly constructed! I learned a lot though, and most importantly I learned it was possible to make exactly what I wanted if I tried hard enough.

UT: You’ve mentioned that you enjoy being resourceful — has that always informed your creative process?

CM: I never had much money growing up, so finding a cheap (or free) way of doing things was always a priority. If I could use fabric from some curtains or an old painting drop sheet instead of buying new fabric, I would do that. There’s also something really satisfying about creating something valuable from something that’s deemed worthless by others. 

UT: How do you balance minimalism and functionality without compromising either in your designs?

CM: It requires some self-control and reminding yourself that people (or you) are meant to wear or use the item you’re creating. Clothing can be seen as physical tools that are meant to function seamlessly for the user.  At the end of the day, I don’t want to impose so much of my own “creativity” that something becomes unwearable or forces the wearer to be a billboard for my brand.

UT: Is there a particular piece in the range that holds a special place in your heart?

CM: Picking favourites from the archive is super hard, so I’ll just touch on a CM piece that’s launching for FW25. It’s called the Gasket Blouson and it’s a zip-front collared jacket made from a very cool wax-treated nylon. I’m really stoked on it because it combines old and new functionality into one piece.

The silhouette is a classic zip up jacket, but I included modern organic pattern lines. The material reads as vintage wax-cotton—like something you’d find on a Barbour— but it’s a nylon base, making it lightweight. It also has gaskets at the cuff which function as a weather-seal for wind and rain, while retaining a formal look.

UT: You also do Portal with Patrick and John alongside your eponymous label. They feel similar in ways but maintain their own distinct character, how are you able to manage that?

CM: Yes! Keeping the two separate is a work in progress.

When I started the Colin Meredith label, Portal didn’t exist (we started working on it a few months after I launched the first CM jacket). The first CM styles felt pretty “outdoor” because that was a theme I had been working into quite a bit in the years prior with all of my camping and activewear projects.

Once Portal became a real project and we created a launch date (SS25), I started creating more of a separation between the two labels. I reserve all my outdoor performance ideas for Portal and divert my more “artistic” or expressive ideas that aren’t necessarily “activewear” into the Colin Meredith brand. Some things like the Soft Comp Pants and Jackets in the CM label have carried over from the first collections probably feel similar to the vibe of Portal, but I’m phasing those items out and taking the CM brand in a more “lifestyle” direction. 

I hate using all of the labels for these themes but I think you know what I mean. FW25 CM starts to create a more accurate picture of what I’m trying to make for the brand. Things like natural materials, metal hardware and more expressive silhouettes will become more central to CM, and Portal will be the destination for my technical and performance design work.

UT: You’ve achieved so much already, what’s next on the horizon for Colin Meredith—the man and the brand?

CM: Haha! It’s been a wild ride so far. I’m really excited to continue building the worlds of both brands (Colin Meredith and Portal). I just got back from shooting FW25 Portal in the French Alps, and we got some amazing content—very stoked to share that.

Now my focus will shift to CM for the next few weeks as I’m prepping to launch the FW25 collection online and shipping out the new collection to retailers (like UP THERE!). Beyond that, I’m trying to soak up the rest of the summer and maybe sign up for some trail races in 2026!