How North Face designed camping gear that works for every body
From the very first day that professional ski mountaineer and free skier Vasu Sojitra signed on as a North Face –sponsored athlete in 2017, he campaigned for the brand to incorporate more elements of universal design into its product line. Having lost his leg as an infant, Sojitra was the brand’s first disabled athlete and sensitive to how conventional gear can ruin an outdoor adventure for those…
Professional ski mountaineer Vasu Sojitra, who lost his leg as an infant, became North Face's first disabled athlete in 2017. He pushed the brand to incorporate universal design elements into its products. North Face designer Wyatt Grose says the company assembled a team of designers who built prototypes in their labs and sewed them by hand.
Every October, they would bring new designs to the Adaptive Climbers Festival in Kentucky's Red River Gorge, collecting real-time feedback via Post-it Notes attached directly to the items. This allowed them to make changes quickly and test again for additional immediate commentary. The North Face Universal Collection, winner of the Best Design North America award in 2026, was released in April 2026.
It includes a tent, backpack, sleeping bag, and mules, featuring accessible innovations like a winglike, magnetic-closure sleeping bag, interchangeable tent poles, an enlarged doorway, and affordable mules priced at just $65. Sojitra noted the positive feedback from athletes who tested the products, expressing excitement that their input was incorporated into the nationwide-sold tent.
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