BIRD BECOMES BUNNY ON ARC'TERYX'S LUNAR NEW YEAR GEAR OUTLET

Arc'teryx has gone from hiker fav to streetwear flex in a matter of years, thanks in no small part to co-signs from much-imitated folks like Virgil Abloh and Drake. Longtime fans may grouse but such is the nature of the biz and Arc'teryx seems keen to adapt.

There's the accessible System_A sub-label, for instance, and a rumored Lunar New Year capsule that'd further Arc'teryx's push into the perpetually profitable Chinese market.

Note that the Arc'teryx Lunar New Year capsule hasn't been confirmed by the brand but the bunny-centric jackets that first surfaced on Arc'teryx's always opinionated Reddit forum is pretty compelling (Lunar New Year 2023 is the Year of the Rabbit). Plus, the capsule wouldn't even be Arc'teryx's first Lunar New Year drop, though it's more involved than some of the previous efforts.

Highsnobiety has reached out to representatives of the brand to confirm details of the Lunar New Year capsule.

In the meantime, there's plenty of time to dissect the goods, given that Lunar New Year will be observed in China on January 22, 2023. If it's legit, the capsule will once again be exclusive to Chinese Arc'teryx outlets.

Not that there's actually that much to dissect: the sneak peeks reveal only a few classic Arc'teryx items — Alpha SV Jacket, Atom LT Hoody, Motus AR shirt — branded with a stylized rabbit logo on the front and rear.

WEIBO

The oversized branding is especially telling of the streetwear crowd that Arc'teryx is chasing here, considering that these garments are normally bereft of any rear branding.

It's also interesting that Arc'teryx went so big on the bunny branding, swapping out its signature Archaeopteryx skeleton — "dead bird" to devotees — for a rabbit in motion.

Arc'teryx has toyed with its logo for previous collaborations, like when Jil Sander and Palace got its 'lil logo beneath the typical Arc'teryx branding, but this is a pretty big departure from the norm (assuming it's real).

The comments on Arc'teryx's subreddit are unsurprisingly critical of the collection — one top comment summarizes the response succinctly: "Not a fan. Dead bird is OG and can never be topped."

Unless a limited capsule is particularly considered, it's unlikely to score anything other than tepid reviews but Arc'teryx likely cares not. After all, this drop isn't for them.