686 is the snowboard outerwear brand that has stayed independently owned for over 30 years in an industry where almost everyone else got acquired. Founded on 13 November 1992 in Los Angeles by Michael Akira West, the brand grew out of the South Bay skate scene and has never moved away from the intersection of street culture and mountain performance that defined it from day one. In March 2024, 686 became a Certified B Corp — one of only 0.01% of US apparel brands to earn that distinction.
The Founder and the Name
Michael Akira West grew up in South Bay, LA in the 1980s, skating with the local crew. He stepped on a skateboard in the early eighties and was introduced to snowboarding in 1985 as part of the Venice Beach skate scene. After finishing university, he launched 686 on 13 November 1992.
The name has a personal origin: it comes from a central date in the life of West’s grandmother — 6 June 1986 — and the digits (6+8+6) add up to 20, his age when he founded the company. The brand originally launched as Jib 686, shortened to just 686 in 1995.
686 is a minority-owned, independently operated company headquartered in California with 48 full-time employees. That independence is deliberate. While competitors have been acquired by conglomerates (Burton by private equity, Volcom by Kering then Authentic Brands), West has kept 686 private and focused on what he calls “slow, consistent, and profitable growth.”
The SMARTY 3-in-1 System
686’s signature innovation is the SMARTY 3-in-1 layering system, introduced in the mid-1990s and continuously refined since. The concept: an outer waterproof shell with a zip-in insulated inner jacket, creating a three-in-one system that adapts to conditions without a bag full of separate layers.
SMARTY 3-in-1 Form Jacket — $270 (Men’s and Women’s)
The SMARTY 3-in-1 Form is 686’s best-known product. The specs: infiDRY 20K waterproof / 20K breathability shell with a removable SMARTY midlayer packed with 160g infiLOFT insulation. Features include a Hoodlink system (a proprietary clip that lets you roll the jacket into a packable object), pit vents with mesh lining, headphone loops, internal goggle pocket, and powder skirt.
Outdoor Gear Lab named it best budget snowboard jacket. Reviewers consistently praise the versatility — shell-only for warm spring days, full system for January storms, inner puffer as a standalone for town wear. At $270, it’s competing with mid-range single-purpose jackets that can’t match the three-way flexibility.
The SMARTY 3-in-1 Form is available in both men’s and women’s versions.
The GLCR Line
GLCR (Glacier) is 686’s technical flagship range — the line for serious mountain riders who want top-tier construction with 686’s aesthetic identity.
GORE-TEX Pro 3L Thermagraph Jacket
The top of the GLCR line. This is a 3-layer Gore-Tex Pro shell with Polartec Alpha insulation in mapped zones — warmer in the core and extremities where you need heat, more breathable across the back and underarms where you generate it during activity.
Mountain Weekly News described it as a jacket that “thrives from resort to backcountry on warm bluebirds or through blizzards.” The Gore-Tex Pro membrane is the same technology used in Arc’teryx and Patagonia’s premium shells, placed here at a price point well below either. Features include body-mapped “Hot Pockets” heat zones, merino wool blend inner collar, and RFID-blocking pocket.
GLCR GORE-TEX Core Jacket
The GLCR entry point: a 2-layer Gore-Tex shell with reliable weather protection, chest vent for breathability, and 686’s lifetime warranty on the GLCR line. It strips out the insulation and mapping of the Thermagraph for riders who prefer to control their own layering underneath.
Both GLCR jackets are available in men’s and women’s versions.
The Everywhere Pant
One of 686’s most distinctive products. The Everywhere Pant uses technical stretch fabric with 10,000mm waterproofing and mechanical stretch to create a pant that works on the mountain and in the pub afterwards. The cut is slim, the cuff works with both snow boots and regular shoes, and the aesthetic sits closer to chinos than ski pants.
It’s not a backcountry performance piece — for that, the GLCR range delivers higher specs and reinforced construction. But for resort riders who want one pair of pants for the chairlift, the lodge, and the drive home, the Everywhere Pant solves a real problem. Available in men’s and women’s versions.
The Team
686’s team philosophy is rider-driven, not podium-driven. The motto: “High Tech. Good Times.” The roster:
- Forest Bailey — creative, style-focused rider and long-time 686 core member
- Sammy Luebke — big-mountain specialist known for aggressive backcountry lines
- Phil Jacques — street and park rider with a raw, technical approach
- Cam Pierce — versatile all-mountain rider
- Tor Lundstrom — European addition, one half of BYNDXMDLS, described by 686’s team manager as having “infectious attitude and outrageous riding”
- Matt Belzile — Canadian rider known for Manboys video edits
- Marco Feichtner, Atsushi Hasegawa, Riley Nickerson, Sebi Geiger, Andy Nudds (UK)
686 recently opened its team beyond snowboarding for the first time, welcoming skier Parker White — signalling the brand’s expansion into the wider winter sports market.
B Corp and Sustainability
686 earned B Corp certification in March 2024 with an overall score of 80.5 — significantly above the 50.9 median for businesses completing the B Impact Assessment. The strongest category score was Environment at 23.1 points.
The sustainability credentials are concrete:
- Climate Neutral Certified — 686 tracks, reduces, and offsets its carbon footprint annually
- Science-aligned targets — committing to reduce Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 50% by 2032, and Scope 3 emissions intensity by 58% by 2032, in line with a 1.5°C pathway
- Fabric waste reduction — partnerships with factories to save miles of fabric from landfill each year
- Governance — earned “Mission Locked” distinction (10 points), indicating the company is structurally designed to create positive stakeholder impact
The Position
686 occupies the mid-market with a coherence most competitors can’t match. The DTC brands (Dope Snow, Montec) beat it on price. The premium brands (Arc’teryx, Patagonia) beat it on membrane technology. But 686 offers something neither tier does: a GORE-TEX Pro shell at a mid-market price, a 3-in-1 system that genuinely reduces your kit burden, B Corp certification, and a cultural identity rooted in 30+ years of skate-to-snow independence.
For riders who grew up on skateboards and ended up in the mountains — or who simply want well-made, versatile kit without premium-brand pricing — 686 is the brand that’s been answering that brief since 1992. The fact that it’s still independently owned, still minority-owned, and now B Corp certified says everything about where the company’s priorities sit.