Gorpcore lives on at Cecilie Bahnsen’s PFW SS25 show

It was only a few days ago that Noah Johnson, GQ’s Global Style Director, declared the gorpcore trend “fully dead”. Yet it’s already regained a pulse at Paris Fashion Week this season. Yesterday, Cecilie Bahnsen, a Danish womenswear label, revealed a new collaboration with The North Face on the runway, one of the most exciting outdoorsy cross-overs to come from fashion month. Against the industrial cement backdrop, models walked the runway in hyper-feminine renditions of mountain dresses, mountain jackets, mountain shorts, the Base Camp Clutch, the Base Camp Duffel, and the Glenclyffe Boot. The brand’s latest collection, “The Crux”, is perfect for those who find themselves at a PFW afterparty on Friday night but up a mountain by Sunday morning (it’s called having range). 

Cecilie Bahnsen’s bouncy silhouettes and detailing always feel like they’ve been softy kissed by a cloud, and the Spring 2025 show was no different. Drawing inspiration from The North Face’s ethos, “never stop exploring”, the waterproof and practical nature of the all-black pieces only added to the show’s mountain-themed throughline. There were plenty of floral motifs (of course), embroidery, and scalloped edges referencing lace. Technical fabrics like recycled polyester ripstop were transformed into lightweight windbreaker coats and layered over floral-trimmed shorts, each adorned with flower-shaped pullers, and 3D floral appliques scattered across the surface of North Face duffle bags, infusing Bahnsen’s signature couture touch throughout.

Cecilie Bahnsen, founder and creative director of the brand, says she pulled from the functionality of style in Scandinavia for the seven-piece collab. “It has to work for real life; we’re biking in the wind, it’s rainy, nature decides, and our clothes have to work for all of it,” she said in a press release from the brand. “This collection is my tribute to Ingrid Harshbarger, the late designer at The North Face, whose meticulous craftsmanship I admire endlessly.” According to Bahnsen, the collection has even sparked a newfound fascination with mountain climbers. “There’s a strength and complexity in what they do, yet it appears so graceful and effortless, almost like ballet – performed vertically on a cliff edge,” she said. 

Paris Fashion Week has ushered in the balletcore and gorpcore crossover we didn’t know we needed, but, as with most runway reveals, fans of The North Face or Cecilie Bahnsen (or both) will have to wait until Spring 2025 to shop the collection. The exclusive collaboration will only be available on the Cecilie Bahnsen website, in stores at selected The North Face locations, and at a limited selection of retail partners, so you may want to bike, run, climb, or swim your way to your nearest stockist on that day. Thankfully, you’ll have your own cloud-like mountain jacket for the trek home.