Financier quit job to launch Norwegian Wool—billionaires wear his luxury coats
When the first prototype of the Norwegian Wool jacket arrived at Michael Berkowitz’s apartment in The Bronx, New York, in August 2014, the temperature was 95 degrees.
Wanting to test the waterproof knee-length wool coat without suffering heatstroke, the founder and CEO of the then-fledgling clothing brand took it to a supermarket in West Harlem. “[I] Berkowitz, 38, remembers pacing back and forth in the freezer for 30 minutes to assess the temperature of his liner. “This is New York, so no one stops you, no one asks you. By the end, my face was cold but my body was completely warm. I remember thinking, ‘Okay, we’re on to something.'”
At the time, Berkowitz was a commodities trader hoping to start his own business. Today, Norwegian Wool coats adorn the shoulders of billionaires, actors, politicians and financiers at campaign events, campaign events. Annual World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerlandand a Season 3 episode of HBO’s “Succession” series. Berkowitz says the apparel brand is profitable in 2024 and has been profitable in seven of the last eight years.
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Berkowitz declined to share other financial information, citing competitive pressure; but he said his company’s products are now sold in more than 100 stores worldwide, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdales, Nordstrom and a New York showroom that is open by appointment only.
The appeal of Norwegian Wool coats is part form, part function. Financiers are expected to dress a certain way, but the classic woolly Italian coats many wear aren’t designed for weather below 40 degrees, says Berkowitz.
“If you show up wearing an outfit [puffer coat] “It looks like you’re going to the North Pole, but the temperature is only 40 degrees, you don’t look like someone who can break down walls and make a deal,” he says.
Norwegian Wool’s best-selling mid-length Euro Coats currently range from $1,545 to $2,945 each, depending on the type of wool used. The brand also sells other lengths and styles, including blazers for men and women, sport coats, rain and ski jackets, and a variety of winter coat options and accessories. Berkowitz estimates that about 40 billionaires buy Norwegian Wool coats.
A luxury venture with humble roots
Berkowitz says the idea for Norwegian Wool came to him in 2013 while he and a friend were shivering on a subway platform. “I told him, ‘I need a coat that looks good, that I can wear to work, that will keep me warm,'” Berkowitz recalls. “He put his arm around my shoulders and said, ‘Dude, get me one when you find it.'”
After doing some research, Berkowitz identified a simple culprit, and says: Many fashionable coats are designed in parts of Italy where the weather rarely freezes. January average temperature in florenceroughly 40 degrees Fahrenheit compared to 30 degrees for example in new york and 25 degrees in chicago.
Companies based in Canada and Scandinavia are producing warmer coats for harsh winters, but as one designer told her, the two industries “don’t talk to each other.”
Norwegian Wool’s showroom in New York’s Midtown district
Norwegian Wool
Berkowitz flew to Italy and back for months to meet and persuade factory owners who would send the prototypes to his apartment. In the end, he says, he spent $250,000 ($50,000 of his own money and a $200,000 investment from his company’s former CFO, who had heard about Berkowitz’s efforts from a colleague) to test prototypes and order the first batch of 200 floors.
Berkowitz says he carries these coats, one on his body and two in a small bag, to family-owned luxury stores across the United States at night, on weekends and on holidays. She says she often pitches directly to sales reps who know her customers’ common dilemma of wanting to look good in a luxury coat while also feeling warm.
He says he sold all 200 coats in three months and resigned from his day job in early 2015.
“I didn’t get much sleep that year,” Berkowitz said, adding that he tried to hide his efforts during the day so as not to jeopardize his job. According to his former boss, Alan Kestenbaum, now CEO of New York-based conglomerate Bedrock Industries, he simply came across as “street smart” and an enthusiastic employee who was “first in and last to leave.”
Like ‘dip your hand in warm butter’
Berkowitz formed his first partnership in 2017 to sell coats in a department store. The following year, Norwegian Wool participated in two fundraising rounds, both seven-figure deals with private investors, Berkowitz said. He remains the majority owner of the company, he said.
Norwegian Wool coats are generally more expensive than Canada Goose parkas and less expensive than cashmere coats from established Italian luxury brands like Loro Piana. But “Succession” costume director Jon Schwartz says the quality of his materials is high: Norwegian Wool cashmere feels like “dipping your hand into hot butter.”
Berkowitz’s dream for Norwegian Wool, he says, is fame similar to Range Rover cars, known around the world for their blend of style and functionality. He adds that he plans to add more product lines, invest in marketing and host pop-up retail events to increase the brand’s visibility. He says he’s already heard Norwegian Wool come up in organic conversations, even if no one realizes the brand’s founder is within earshot.
If you show up wearing an outfit [puffer coat] It looks like you’re going to the North Pole, but it’s only 40 degrees, you don’t look like the type of person who can break through walls and make a deal.
Michael Berkowitz
Founder and CEO, Norwegian Wool
And as someone within Norwegian Wool’s target demographic—business people who want to make an impact with their look during the cold winter months—she still tests many of the company’s prototypes herself.
Berkowitz outfitted herself and her friends in yet-to-be-released parkas for a February ski trip in the Alps. He says he brought a sample of a recently released bamboo jacket to Paris in September and tossed it onto his rolling suitcase and into the plane’s overhead bin to test for wrinkling and pilling.
“I test things out on the way to my office in Midtown or on vacation to the Alps,” Berkowitz says. “It doesn’t matter where it is, it’s how I wear it. It has to represent how our customers will wear it.”
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