What Exactly Is 'Outletic' Apparel, and Why Should You Care?

It seems like everything in apparel right now needs to have a made up word that combines a couple of words to convey its usage, like athleisure. OK, "athleisure" might be the only one, really. But now there's talk about "outletic" apparel, a term coined by GoLite as part of its 2019 relaunch.

So, what exactly is outletic apparel, and is it any different than other things? You can probably gather that it has something to do with athletic apparel and something to do with outdoor apparel. And you'd be correct!

Basically, it's apparel that's made for working out and exercising comfortably, while standing up to harsher conditions than an indoor gym or yoga studio.

It's not simply apparel. As a matter of fact, that's just the first phase of GoLite's relaunch and focus. The company's brand manager told Gear Junkie that it could eventually move into "footwear, bag and accessories collections in the next few seasons."

Also, GoLite isn't going the brick-and-mortar route, instead partnering with specialty retailers to sell its goods.

The other part of the "out" in outletic has to do with the materials themselves. GoLite is using recycled fibers and eco-friendly dyes and printing techniques to create its apparel. For its first launch in the spring, the company claimed that more than 80 percent of its first products will use "environmentally preferred, recycled, and low-energy production materials and processes."

It may just be a marketing ploy, but in the event it catches on, it's another fancy new apparel trend to watch for the future. Outletic. That's kind of fun to say, just like athleisure. Here's to more hybrid apparel categories with fun names, like runlaxation (for the runner who hates running) or yoghurt (yoga apparel with features that treat injuries).