Mild winters have spawned lightweight coats that use sophisticated fabrics. But are they any match for cold?

摘要

We're just shy of the Arctic Circle on a glacier that peaks above the clouds. Our friends think we're crazy - we've flown, driven and hiked almost 3,000 miles to Iceland, then dragged a local tour guide out with us, all for the purpose of testing winter coats. But hey, in the age of global warming, you've got to go pretty far to get cold. Okay, we're kidding (about the global warming, not the trip). Still, the need for winter coats may be waning. Retailers dubbed 2006 "the year of the coat crisis" due to racks of unsold winter coats in stores and mild temperatures on the East Coast of the U.S. and in Western Europe. In 2008 the outlook for coat retailers is, again, grim. Two winters ago there was a 20 percent plunge in sales of outerwear, according to Marshal Cohen, a chief analyst at research firm NPD, and this year the firm is expecting a 4 percent drop. "Because of everything we've seen with global warming, there's been just as much demand for vests as winter coats," says Michael Macko, vice president of men's fashion for Saks Fifth Avenue.