K-WAY

Italian dictionaries record the word "K-way" or "Kay-way" starting from the early 1980s, but it's been at least since this year that the commercial name of the well-known waterproof windbreaker jacket, which folds into a pocket and can be tied around the waist like a fanny pack, makes its appearance in the press. The K-Way was created a few years earlier in Paris, on a rainy day in 1965. A clothing retailer, Léon-Claude Duhamel, observing the passersby, wet in their water-soaked coats, had the idea: to create a resistant yet portable raincoat. And so it was: the K-Way was born. Originally it was actually called "en-cas (de pluie)" ["in case (of rain)"], written "en-k", but in 1966, to target an international market, that name was translated into English as K-Way; and that's how the company founded by Duhamel would also be called. Very lightweight, made of nylon or PVC, with a hood and wide sleeves, the new product immediately achieved extraordinary results: 250,000 pieces sold in just the first year. The garment was then further perfected, and the new collection, presented in 1970, was a real triumph: the K-Way began to be known worldwide, and meanwhile, the French brand was planning new clothing products, for skiing as well as for sailing. Remaining faithful to the principles that had inspired Leon-Claude Duhamel, the new K-Ways looked on one hand to the most advanced technologies – they were made of increasingly advanced fabrics, like tear-resistant nylon, waterproof, windproof, and breathable, similar to that used in hot air balloons – and on the other hand to the dictates of contemporary fashion: new flashy colors were introduced (in addition to the more traditional shades of blue and red), and increasingly tight and sophisticated models were put on the market, such as reversible K-Ways with goose down and those made of fur that reproduced the coats of animals (in long, short, and shaved fur versions). In reality, the world of fashion has embraced the garment since its first appearance; and alongside the expression "K-Way style," used to refer to waterproof garments, such as pants for motorcyclists, there has been a variety of reinterpretations of the rain jacket: from K-Ways to tie around the neck to those made of polyester obtained by recycling plastic bottles; from portable raincoats printed with floral camouflage effects, to those made of rainbow-shaded crepe de chine, to "Shirò's K-Way in blue fox with a marsupial lined with iguana". Over the years, our waterproof jacket has become just one of the many products of a company capable of designing a bit of everything, from suitcase lines to car interiors (all strictly branded K-Way). The name invented by Duhamel, which has long lost its value as a brand name to indicate any type of lightweight and manageable raincoat, has therefore found new life and new opportunities for use. At the same time, the rain jacket has transformed into a symbol of freedom and leisure, of outdoor vacations, at the sea or in the mountains; becoming the image of a world, youthful and carefree, in which just wearing a light waterproof cape is enough to face life's sudden downpours.