Functional, comfortable and durable are the watchwords for a collaborative collection of clothing for the great outdoors

British outdoor brand Karrimor have launched a new premium outerwear collection in collaboration with British designer Nigel Cabourn. K100 draws on Karrimor's six decades of innovation and craftsmanship to create a line of high quality jackets and coats using superior fabrics and cutting-edge design. The 60-piece collection includes a dozen Made in England styles created by Newcastle-based Cabourn which reflect his longstanding passion for functional vintage military and expedition clothing.

"For me to agree a collaboration with another company, there has to be a strong connection," he says. "When I started to look into Karrimor's history and the amazing achievements the brand and the men who risked life and limb using the product have made, I couldn't say no. This, coupled with the fact that when I created my first limited edition collection back in 2003 – called the Ascent of Cabourn and celebrating the 50 year anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary's achievement of being the first man to climb to the top of Everest – one of the things that totally inspired me was the original Karrimor Framed Rucksack from the early 1960s. Everything I design comes from either a moment in history, an inspirational person or a vintage garment."

Born in Lancashire in 1946 and originally known as the Karrimor Bag Co, the British specialists in outdoor equipment have a reputation for ground-breaking design. The new adventure from the brand honours one such innovation, taking its name from the first weatherproof yet flexible nylon fabric produced known as Ks-100e.

"Once I started researching fabrics, colours and designs, inspiration came quite quickly," says Cabourn. "I am hugely excited about the results."

The designer studied fashion at Northumbria in the early 1970s and has a design studio in Newcastle. "For more than 35 years I've been avidly collecting vintage military, sports, expedition and work wear clothing and books and have amassed thousands of pieces from all corners of the globe. I'm absolutely fascinated and excited by the fabric and details in these functional, comfortable and above all durable garments, which have on the whole, been created not by fashion designers but by technicians and scientists."

For Cabourn, the product comes first. "The fabrics and trims, the manufacturers we work with are all carefully chosen so we produce the best garments we can. At the end of the day my aim with each collection or collaboration is to create timeless styles that have the quality to last, get better with age and wear and that are still relevant in years to come – clothing people can wear for a lifetime, then pass down to their children."

His collections include British-made Authentic; Japanese-made Mainline; new workwear line Lybro and, new for AW16, retro sportswear line The Army Gym.

W: karrimor.com; W: cabourn.com