YKK®: 3 little letters to consider when choosing functional clothing

1. A broken zipper is a deal breaker

Waterproof clothing only protects if the zipper has the same resistance. And insulated clothing will protect you from the cold as long as you know how to fasten it and don't let a zipper get stuck. If there are YKK® letters on your zipper, you have nothing to worry about.

The Japanese company Yoshida Kogyo Kabushikikaisha has been producing reliable and durable zippers for almost 90 years. YKK® zippers were even worn by Apollo astronauts on the moon.

2. They won't stop sliding, but they won't unzip

Common sense says that the more we use something, the faster it wears out. And then there are YKK zippers, which slide more smoothly the more you use them. Self-lubricating technology works in tandem with self-locking, so you can pull YKK® zippers up and down and they'll always stay in place and won't unzip on their own.

Northfinder products with YKK® zippers

3. A zipper can also save space and reduce weight

If thinness and lightness are key for you when choosing functional clothing, we recommend the smart model VISLON Slim, which is 23% lighter and 25% thinner than standard models.

4. Durability applies to both functionality and appearance.

Functionality will always be paramount for us, but we never underestimate style. YKK® zippers don't jam, help protect against the elements, and their metal finish lasts as long as they reliably zip.

With all Northfinder products, we also take into account the colour and cut of zippers, so they’re an important functional as well as aesthetic detail.