The Brand

Luhta has its roots in the northern forests and nature. Building on more than a century of experience, Luhta manufactures men’s and women’s clothing and footwear for all seasons. By skilfully combining heritage and present-day knowledge, Luhta creates classic and stylish products and novelties for both active and relaxed leisure time. The collections range from sporty and multifunctional urban wear to stylish outdoor and ski clothing.

Cooperation

Supporting Finnish sports is important to Luhta. Ice skating is considered a basic skill in Finland and, for more than ten years, Luhta has worked with the Finnish Figure Skating Association to help uphold that skill in younger generations. Acting as the governing body of local skating clubs and teams, the Association plays a valuable role in advancing the sport of figure skating on a national level.

Off the ice, Finnish figure skaters represent wearing Luhta. Luhta’s ice skater fleece has already attained cult status among Finnish figure skaters, from amateurs to world-class professionals.

Luhta has also traditionally participated in the Finlandia Trophy Espoo international figure skating competition, which is held annually to kick off the Finnish competitive season.

Figure skating as a sport is a perfect fit for Luhta: it is a sport of athleticism combined with aesthetics, of challenges and bravery and of patience, goal-orientation and teamwork. These are qualities that also describe the Luhta brand.

The History of Luhta

The Luhta story starts in 1907 in Lahti, Finland, when Vihtori Luhtanen decided to start his own clothing company together with his wife Jenny. Jenny designed and sewed the clothes while Vihtori was responsible for selling them at the Lahti market.

Their offering consisted of men’s and women’s underwear and aprons embroidered by Jenny. After initial success, they added cotton work shirts, trousers made of moleskin, nanking and everlasting fabrics as well as regatta shirts, a big fashion item of the time, to the selection.

The recession of the 1930’s, the war and the post-war years were not easy, and there was a constant shortage of textile materials. Luhta produced whatever they could get materials for, from clothes to hats to ties.

By the 1950’s, supply and competition had returned to normal and the range of products was reduced, with more emphasis on leisure wear. Luhta became the biggest outdoor clothing manufacturer in Finland.

In the 1960’s, Luhta had huge success as a brand name in Finland and offered a modern collection that was lighter and more technical and multifunctional than anything that came before. Luhta became seen as a pioneer of colourful and light clothing.

In the 1970’s, Luhta continued to create new and innovative designs and the product lines showed a clear divide into two categories: traditional everyday clothes and colourful, easy-care leisurewear.

In the early 1980’s, Luhta’s sporty clothing lines made their big international breakthrough in continental Europe. The ski clothes boom of the time played a big part in it and Luhta’s unique design was just right for the fashion trends of the day.

To support Luhta’s growth, several well-known Finnish clothing brands were merged with the company, creating the Luhta Group or L-Fashion Group Oy.