From Peak District roots to global ambition, Equip Outdoor Technologies is scaling sustainably without sacrificing its mountain heritage
If you’re a UK-based outdoor enthusiast, you’re likely to know Equip Outdoor Technologies UK (Equip) through its leading brands, Rab and Lowe Alpine. Rab was founded in 1981 in the Peak District, while Lowe Alpine was established by two brothers in 1967. The brands were integrated under the Equip name in 2003, and 2011 respectively, enabling global expansion and consolidated strategy. Now regarded as a leading outdoor apparel and equipment producer based in Derbyshire, UK, Equip effectively builds on the technical heritage and core values of its brands while scaling its reach and impact.
Hervé Domenighini, EMEA & APAC Sales Director, joins us to elaborate on Equip’s evolution. “We are proud to own both the Rab and Lowe Alpine brands,” Hervé opens. “Our experienced team develop high-performance products designed to give the user absolute protection, comfort, and freedom in the toughest mountain conditions. As mountain people ourselves, our products are developed by experts; they are tried, trusted, and the first choice for countless climbers, hikers, runners, skiers, and cyclists seeking adventure.
“Rab’s commitment to performance, quality and innovation is unwavering, ensuring that even as the product range expands, the needs of serious mountain users are never compromised. At the same time, the brand’s reputation for quality, authenticity, and conscious design resonates with a broader audience, including outdoor enthusiasts and lifestyle consumers. Insulation remains Rab’s core expertise, with sleeping bags and insulated jackets still central to the range, but the portfolio has expanded to include highly successful shell ranges, as well as running and ski collections.”
Rab is well known for ‘making kit you’d rather repair than replace’ and, in 2025, opened its first customer-facing Rab Service Centre in Cheshire to encourage garment repair and circularity, showcasing the expert services that Rab has offered for the past 45 years. “This was a big milestone for us and one that underscores our dedication to circularity in the outdoor industry, making care and repair services more accessible,” Hervé confirms. “Globally, we are already repairing over 13,500 products and washing over 8400 products annually in Service Centres across the UK, US, The Netherlands, and Canada with these numbers increasing year on year. Our new Service Centre hosts some of the most advanced laundry equipment in the industry. Last year, we also launched wash services for non-Rab products in the UK Service Centres for the very first time with plans to roll this out globally as capacity allows.”
Environmental impact
As demonstrated by its network of Service Centres, Equip’s commitment to the environment extends well beyond its products, with several initiatives aimed at minimizing its environmental impact across its operations, products and wider supply chain. With the company’s 2025 Sustainability Report showing a 46.2 percent carbon reduction compared with 2019, we’re keen to learn more about Equip’s approach. “We pride ourselves on producing high-quality, hard-wearing technical clothing and equipment that’s designed to last, and we strive to address some of our sector’s biggest challenges,” Hervé states.
“We have a robust CSR agenda focused on product, partner, planet, and people, and this is reviewed regularly to ensure we have clear objectives and targets in all areas. Since our inception, we’ve emphasized repairing kit, and we now have Rab Service Centers globally, so products can see another adventure and not landfill. We are a Fair Wear Leader Brand, a bluesign System Partner, and have launched Material Facts for the industry, our groundbreaking product sustainability data label.”
Elaborating on Rab’s Material Facts scheme, Hervé continues: “Material Facts is an industry-first initiative that provides clear, concise data on recycled content, PFAS status, country of manufacture, and renewable energy use at the product level, which can be accessed via Rab’s product pages and QR codes. This scheme scrutinizes our supply chain and the transparency of components, which is essential for future proofing the business while preparing us for upcoming Digital Product Passport requirements.
“This has also driven the success of the Material Facts Collective, a group of brands working alongside us and the European Outdoor Group (EOG) to create a methodology and toolkit that any outdoor apparel or equipment brand can adopt,” he adds. “We firmly believe that collaborating on an industry standard, rather than competing, helps the entire sector to grow in an area that is equally challenging for all. Within the collective, we are currently exploring any additional meaningful data that can be shared through Material Facts.”
In addition to the Material Facts Collective, Equip became a bluesign System Partner in 2025. “After successfully removing all intentionally added PFAS from our ranges in AW25, it felt like the natural next step to become a bluesign System Partner,” Hervé shares. “We’ve always believed that growing a successful business and doing the right thing are not opposing goals, but rather inseparable ones. Our commitment to responsible manufacturing, safer chemistry, stronger supply chain partnerships, and long-term thinking has shaped our decisions for decades; gaining bluesign System Partner status has formalized and reaffirmed what was already guiding us.”
With a five-year strategy focused on international growth, Equip’s expansion plan is centered on scaling in existing markets while building long-term foundations in emerging territories. “North America and Asia are, without a doubt, two important areas of expansion for our business, and we are already seeing positive results and strong performance in both,” Hervé states. “Europe also remains part of our expansion, and we deploy our strategy based on the maturity level of each market.
“Historically, growth came from territories around the UK like the Nordics, Benelux, Germany, and France. However, in recent years, by carrying out changes in some partners and refocusing our strategy, we are already seeing increased retailer distribution and market shares, particularly in Alpine regions where we can really focus on ‘The Mountain People’. To support this growth, my role has now expanded to not only cover Europe, but the whole EMEA and APAC region, so I’m excited to lead our regional teams into this new era and drive our renewed focus.”
Concluding our conversation, Hervé offers his final thoughts on Equip’s future.
“Looking ahead, I hope to see Rab firmly established on its path to becoming the brand of choice for mountain people globally. That means stronger brand awareness in our key markets, continued growth in core categories, and real progress toward being a top five mountain brand.
“With clear investment in people, systems, and global capability, I see us becoming an even stronger, more modern, data-driven business that grows sustainably while always staying true to its values and brand heritage.”