Navigation : EXPO21XX > YACHTING 21XX > H10: Fashion & Clothing > Helly Hansen

Helly Hansen

Company Profile

It is over 120 years since Helly Juell Hansen made his first waterproof sailing jacket. Helly was a Norwegian sailor who spent his life fighting the forces of nature. At the age of 15, and after only five years at sea, he passed the Mate's examination. Five years later he obtained his Master's certificate. Throughout this time in the North Sea he felt the weather pounding his body. To afford some protection innumerable hours were spent oiling clothes to make them waterproof before bad weather set in. Helly Hansen wanted more protection than this so when he came ashore he took it upon himself to develop better rainwear for Norwegian seamen. The adventure started in a cellar in Moss, Norway, where five employees experimented until they came up with a new technique. They sewed garments out of unbleached canvas, impregnated them with home-made linseed oil and developed secret methods for treating the garments which made them both supple and waterproof. Fishermen who had previously used three sets of clothes in one season could now use one set for three seasons. From those humble beginnings back in 1877 Helly Hansen has become a leading manufacturer of high performance outdoor clothing.We have more years experience outfitting people for the outdoors than any other company in the business. By innovating in fabric technologies and construction, from the world's first pile fabric to the first waterproof, breathable fabric, Helly Hansen has kept people warm, dry and comfortable no matter how extreme the conditions.