discoThe brands to know, what Canadian menswear is known for, and how it came to be.
Pick the one that looks most like you, or browse without choosing. The picks and the full list follow your choice.
Start from a brand you know. Each pairing says what's similar and what changes.
Two starting points for each style. Choose a style above to see only those.
The oldest label here and the one most Canadians recognise, running from a 1957 Toronto maker of vests, raincoats and snowmobile suits to a listed company. It defines the country's parka category.
Start with The classic down parkas, plus the newer rainwear and knitwear
Veilance is Arc’teryx’s city line: waterproof construction cut for everyday clothes. Haven’s house shells work in the same vein.
Start with The Mionn and Field jackets, and the Spere and Indisce trousers
Haven grew from an Edmonton shop into a Vancouver retailer with its own Gore-Tex-led label. It stocks Veilance and many Japanese labels beside its own.
Start with The house shells and liners, and the stocked Japanese labels
Toronto's answer to the plain-clothing question, built on directly sourced Egyptian cotton. It is the easiest Canadian label to try first.
Start with Heavyweight tees, oxford shirts and the bedding
The Toronto label that treats domestic production as the whole point, down to the factories it visits monthly. Useful when made-in-Canada is the deciding factor.
Start with Sweatshirts, socks and plain tees
Began as Justin Saunders' Montreal mood board in 2006 and turned into a label and collaboration studio. It now sells its own basics and footwear collaborations with New Balance and others.
Start with The plain cotton staples and the footwear collaborations
The Vancouver bag label, founded in 2009 and named after a small Saskatchewan town. It is sold worldwide, mostly as backpacks and duffels.
Start with The Little America backpack and the striped-lining duffels
Founded in Montreal in 2006 by twin brothers Byron and Dexter Peart with Mark Wiltzer, it names its bags after airports.
Start with The O'Hare tote, Kastrup weekender and Dayton backpack
Founded in Ottawa in 2008 and rooted in graphic design, it has grown into sportswear and technical outerwear built for Canadian winters.
Start with Graphic tees and sweats, winter outerwear, the collaborations
Kyle Kaminsky's Toronto label is built around swim trunks in recycled fabrics with hand-drawn prints, and runs a Parkdale flagship.
Start with Printed swim trunks, camp shirts, terry shirting
Antoine Asselin and Phil Lavoie started Dime as a Montreal skate crew and video outfit in 2005, then turned it into a clothing line in 2014. Its Glory Challenge contest brings pro skaters to Montreal every year.
Start with Graphic tees, heavyweight fleece and its Vans collaborations
Marc-André Garand, William Lessard and designer Julien Gauthier started it in Montreal in 2014 around fabrics from Italian, English and Japanese mills. It calls the result "new wave" tailoring: soft, unstructured suits you can wear with sneakers.
Start with Unstructured suits, overshirts and the made-to-measure service at its Montreal shops
Chef Matty Matheson and designer Ray Natale launched the label in 2022. It cuts and sews its chore coats and double-knee work pants in small batches at its own factory in Parkdale.
Start with The Dufferin chore coat and the double-knee work pants
Every brand here was founded in Canada or is run from there. How we decide what counts.
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Four details to look for, and why they matter.
Look for Matte shells with taped seams and hidden hardware, cut like city tailoring
Why it matters Mountain-grade waterproofing in clothes that pass at work, so one coat covers the commute and the weekend.
Explore Arc’teryx Veilance →
Look for Down parkas with long bodies, deep hoods and real winter fill
Why it matters Built for Canadian winters rather than for show, and much of the parka output is still made in Canada.
Explore Canada Goose →
Look for Logo-light tees, sweats and oxfords in plain colours, repeated season to season
Why it matters The story is the cotton or the factory, so check where each piece is made if that's why you're buying.
Explore Kotn →
Look for Striped-lined nylon backpacks and minimal leather holdalls named after airports
Why it matters Hardware, lining and leather are the design, so they're worth handling before you buy.
Explore Herschel Supply Co. →If you know Kotn and want a next step. Each step costs more and asks more of you; it isn't a ranking of quality, and you don't need to climb it in order.
Plain cotton basics: low risk, no technical claims.
Start with A heavyweight cotton tee and a crew sweatshirt
Bags, swimwear and graphics; similar spend to basics, more personality.
Start with A backpack, then a pair of printed swim trunks
Better leather, mills and sharper cuts; fewer pieces that last longer.
Start with A heavyweight sweatshirt or a leather weekender
Membranes, taped seams and down; the most you'll pay for one piece.
Start with One waterproof shell you will wear all winter
The full list Disco covers. Search, or narrow by style, category and price.
Arc’teryx Veilance$$$$Veilance is Arc'teryx's Vancouver-born city line, applying Gore-Tex construction and minimalist tailoring to monochrome technical outerwear and trousers.Technical & outerwear · Jackets · VancouverProfile →
Neighbour$$$$Vancouver menswear and womenswear boutique opened in Gastown in 2011 by Saager Dilawri, stocking contemporary Japanese and European designers.Plain essentials · Shirts & overshirts · VancouverProfile →
Kotn$$Toronto brand making minimalist everyday basics and bedding from directly sourced Egyptian cotton, with B Corp certification and traceable supply chain.Plain essentials · T-shirts & graphic tees · TorontoProfile →
Haven$$$$Canadian label and retailer making technical, GORE-TEX-driven everyday clothing, with stores in Vancouver and Toronto.Technical & outerwear · Jackets · VancouverProfile →
Bather$$Toronto label making printed swim trunks and warm-weather menswear, sold direct and through wholesalers worldwide.Graphics & summer · Shirts & overshirts · TorontoProfile →
Raised by Wolves$$Ottawa-based streetwear brand founded in 2008, mixing graphic-led menswear, sportswear and technical outerwear made for Canadian weather.Graphics & summer · Hoodies & sweatshirts · OttawaProfile →
Herschel Supply Co.$$Vancouver bag label known for the Little America backpack and striped-lining duffels, with a range spanning luggage, apparel and headwear.Bags & travel · Bags & backpacks · VancouverProfile →
Province of Canada$$Toronto label making logo-light basics, kidswear and home goods almost entirely in Canada, with sweatshirts knit and sewn locally.Plain essentials · Hoodies & sweatshirts · TorontoProfile →
WANT Les Essentiels$$$$Montreal leather goods label making minimal, airport-named travel bags and accessories, founded in 2006 and now owned by the Robert brothers of Quartz Co.Bags & travel · Luggage · MontrealProfile →
JJJJound$$Montreal design studio turned label making pared-back essentials and limited-run collaborations with New Balance, Reebok, Vans and A.P.C.Plain essentials · Sneakers · MontrealProfile →
Canada Goose$$$$Toronto outerwear label known for down parkas, now extending into rainwear, knitwear, footwear and eyewear; publicly listed with Bain Capital as controlling shareholder.Technical & outerwear · Outerwear · TorontoProfile →
Frank & Oak$$Montreal minimal-basics label from 2012, now an online-only brand after its parent's insolvency and the 2025 sale of its IP to Lamour Group.Plain essentials · Shirts & overshirts · MontrealProfile →A label belongs here if it was founded in Canada or is headquartered in Canada today; we say which. Where it manufactures is a separate fact.
It depends on what you need. For technical outerwear: Arc'teryx Veilance, Haven and Canada Goose. For plain everyday basics: Kotn, Province of Canada, Frank & Oak and JJJJound, plus the Vancouver shop Neighbour. For bags: Herschel Supply Co. and WANT Les Essentiels. For graphics and summer clothes: Raised by Wolves from Ottawa and Bather from Toronto.
Not always. Province of Canada aims to make everything in Canada and knits and sews its sweatshirts in Toronto, and Canada Goose keeps much of its parka production in Canadian factories. Kotn is a Toronto company whose clothes are made primarily in Egypt, Portugal and Turkey, and Haven works with partner factories in Canada and Japan. If made in Canada is the reason you're buying, check the brand's production page or the care label.
Vancouver is the strongest city for this list: Haven's Railtown store at 355 Railway Street stocks its own line beside Japanese labels, and Neighbour in Gastown carries Japanese and European designers. In Toronto, Haven has a second store, Bather's Parkdale flagship is at 450 Dufferin Street, and Kotn runs its own shops, as it does in Montreal and Vancouver. Raised by Wolves has a store on Spruce Street in Ottawa. JJJJound sells through timed online releases, and Frank & Oak is online only.
If you want one technical jacket for the city, Arc'teryx Veilance, or Haven's house shells if you'd rather buy from a shop that also stocks Japanese labels. If you need a parka for real cold, Canada Goose, bought direct or from a listed stockist. If you want plain basics, Kotn for the price, or Province of Canada if made in Canada matters. If you want a bag, Herschel's Little America backpack for everyday use, or WANT Les Essentiels if you want leather.
Kotn and Frank & Oak are the lowest-priced labels here, for tees, knitwear and denim. Bather's swim trunks run about $90-$100 USD, and Herschel's bags sit in the middle of the list. Arc'teryx Veilance, Haven, Canada Goose and WANT Les Essentiels are the expensive end, so if one of those is the goal, start with the piece you'll wear most rather than a full outfit.
How we chose: every brand here is in Disco's directory, placed by where it was founded or is based today. Styles, picks and pairings are editorial, drafted from the catalog and published sources; researched, not wear-tested.
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