Helly Hansen (HH) have been developing professional-grade apparel since 1877, including the first waterproof fabrics more than 140 years ago, the first fleece fabrics in the 1960s and the first technical base layers in the 1970s. These uniforms have helped 55,000 global professionals, from Olympian athletes to search and rescue professionals such as the RNLI and Dublin Wicklow Mountain Rescue in Ireland. Joining this impressive roster of partnerships are four new teams from across the UK: Assynt and Arrochar Mountain Rescue Team in Scotland, North of Tyne in England, and Western Beacons in Wales. 

Helly Hansen and the new teams have one common goal: to save lives in the mountains. With that in mind, they’ve created a bespoke 3-layer Mountain Rescue Responder kit with the aim of protecting volunteers against the UK’s unique (and temperamental) weather conditions and varying landscapes. From mountains and moorlands to forests and marshlands; over the past year Helly Hansen has worked with the rescue teams to test and improve their kit, getting first-hand feedback from the volunteers who save lives in the mountains 365 days a year. These insights have helped the brand to develop the Mountain Rescue Responder collection and will hopefully improve any future kit during their 3-year partnership.  

Piers Barnes, Helly Hansen UK & IRL General Manager, said, “As a brand that defines itself through its work with professionals for over 140 years, Helly Hansen has a tremendous amount of respect for mountain rescue teams and their volunteers. We know that it is trust that makes saving lives possible, trust in your team, your environment and in your kit. We are proud to be part of that and to be supporting those who willingly risk their own lives to help others.”