Wait, The Heated Rivalry Fleece Costs How Much?!
Forget Super El Nino. Summer may have just gotten even steamier with the release of the Heated Rivalry fleece.
But if you’ve had your eye on the snuggly jacket since it made its debut on the sexy Canadian hockey series that took the world by storm last year, you may want to make some room on your credit card: the cozy body-warmer is priced high at $356 a pop.
You may also need some patience, as it’s currently sold out.
Province of Canada, the all-star made-in-Canada brand that’s making the hotly anticipated fleece, announced that the white-and-red–trimmed zip-up was available for pre-order starting June 3. Within an hour of the pre-sale, the fleece was marked sold out on its social channels.
The hot ’n’ heavy consumer response has a lot to do with the fleece’s source material. Designed with the queer hockey drama’s costume designer Hanna Puley, it’s become a desirable item among viewers since it first appeared on the back of Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) in Episode 2. (The jacket was Hollander’s 2014 Sochi Olympic uniform.)
The limited-edition sherpa fleece with a raised chenille Canada patch embroidered on the back may be an example of the levelled-up merchandising that Heated Rivalry excels at. There’s a limited-edition album, too, and both Storrie and Williams leveraged their shared sex appeal into an audio erotica series.
But the jacket also has a winning, charitable hook. Ten percent of the proceeds are donated to You Can Play, a non-profit that supports LGBTQ+ inclusion in sports. Both the NHL and NHLPA have also signed up to match those contributions up to $50,000 combined.
So, is the fleece sold out for good? It’s the will-they-won’t-they question we put to the brand. We haven’t heard back from Province of Canada yet, but we’re hoping for good news.
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Flannery Dean is a writer based in Hamilton, Ont. She’s written for The Narwhal, the Globe and Mail and The Guardian.
