Prioritizing the Sport, Lowering the Price, and Bringing Elevated Skiwear within Reach
By Raea Benjamin
While shopping for new ski jackets and patiently awaiting the start of a new ski season, Sara Segall and her husband, Steven, saw an opportunity to make premium skiwear more affordable and seized it. Having always wanted to start her own retail company, Sara finally knew just what it was she wanted to sell.
The result is Orsden, an online retailer launched last winter whose durable and dependable products have passed a rigorous multicontinent testing process, proving to perform in all conditions, and whose direct-to-consumer approach streamlines the shopping experience.
Pronounced orse-den, the name comes from the French word for “snow bear,” ours de neige. The company’s mythical snow bear mascot possesses a unique combination of toughness and playfulness. It is that spirit, along with company founder Sara Segall’s own love for adventure and style, that inspires Orsden.
After spending two years developing their classic jacket, making sure it was warm, waterproof, and well insulated, Orsden launched their easy-to-navigate website, orsden.com, an online store that makes shopping with Orsden a completely electronic experience. Since then, Sara and her staff have kept themselves busy continuing to create dependable products for less. The company recently released ski pants to pair with their sleek, form-fitting jackets; their lodge gear adds casual clothing such as T-shirts and sweatshirts to the stylish mix. The Segalls and their team are excited to continue expanding their collection to reflect a lifestyle full of travel, sport, and camaraderie without breaking their customers’ banks.
Although their skiwear is affordable, Orsden’s intricate product design makes their jackets and pants feel like high-cost, luxury ski apparel. With four-way stretch construction on their exterior and interior, Orsden gear is very responsive to body movement and amazingly comfortable to ski or board in. Plus, their clothing comes in relaxed, everyday shades that can be incorporated into your full winter wardrobe and lifestyle off the slopes.
When they’re not busy designing and developing products or skiing southern Vermont, the Segalls lead mini company pop-ups at ski resorts where they get to interact with their customers and fellow skiers while displaying the quality that is their product. Whether they’re in the factory, exploring new terrain, or hitting the slopes of Stratton—the first mountain they skied together and the one Orsden calls home—Sara and Steven Segall are always working toward their goal of skiers and snowboarders spending more time enjoying their sport and less on the gear.
