The North Face

How The North Face labels evolved over time. Match the markers below against the tag in hand to place a garment in its era.

1. 1960–1969

   Large USA-Made Rectangles

   Tags were large fabric rectangles with a letter-size tab, naming the country of make as the USA.

   
   • The North Face tags were large fabric rectangles at this time
   • They have a letter sizing tab
   • And they state the country of manufacture as the USA

   How to spot it

   A large rectangle tag stating 'Made in USA'.

   Value signal

   Rare; 60s North Face is genuine collector territory.

2. 1970–1979

   Protruding Fabric Tags

   Protruding fabric tags appeared alongside the older style, again USA-made, sizing sometimes on a smaller tab behind the main tag.

   
   • At this time fabric tags that stick out were introduced in conjunction with older tags
   • They too stated the country of manufacture as the USA, and the repetition of this really demonstrates the pride in manufacturing in a country associated with high quality production
   • Sizing information on some of these tags is included on a smaller tab behind the main neck tag

   How to spot it

   A protruding USA-made fabric tag.

   Value signal

   Strong; 70s North Face is highly collectible.

3. 1980–1989

   Reverted 1960s-Style Tags

   Many 80s tags reverted to 1960s designs — useful for placing a piece before the 1990s, but not for telling the 60s from the 80s.

   
   • Many of the tags from the 1980s reverted to designs from the 1960s, so whilst they are useful to compare to find out if the item is from before the 1990s, they don’t help us determine if it’s from the 1960s or 1980s (more help on this can be found below)

   How to spot it

   A 1960s-style tag that still names the USA.

   Value signal

   Desirable; 80s pieces sit just below the 70s in demand.

4. 1990–1999

   Black Square Jacket Label

   A major shift — most 90s tags used a black square, common on Nuptse 700s and Mountain Jackets; production offshored, so country of make dropped off.

   
   • The 1990s saw one of the most significant changes in tag branding
   • Some of the older rectangular tags were still in circulation at this time, but did not include country of manufacture as production began to be offshored
   • Most of the tags from the 1990s began using a black square tag, which was particularly common on North Face jackets like Nupste 700s, and Mountain Jackets
   • In recent times The North Face has reused this tag design, causing some confusion for identification, however using the wash tag method below, you should be able to determine which are vintage from new
   • The sizing information would be included on an extra tab
   • And a lot of care and quality information was attached to the tag

   How to spot it

   The black square tag (check the wash tag — the design was reused).

   Value signal

   Strong; 90s Nuptse and Mountain Jackets are reseller gold.

5. 2000–2009

   Folded Multilingual Tags

   Folded tags became common for the whole tag or for sizing, with multiple languages and the garment's gender now stated.

   
   • In the 2000s, The North Face began using folded tags a lot more, either for the whole tag or to include sizing information
   • Using a combination of languages and including the gender of the item became a lot more common

   How to spot it

   A folded tag with multilingual, gendered sizing.

   Value signal

   Common; modest resale outside standout jackets.

6. 2010–2019

   Boxed-Logo Shiny Tags

   After the logo turned fashion-forward, neck tags often set it in a box; thinner shiny materials and far more care text appeared.

   
   • After the North Face shifted the emphasis of its logo and became more fashion forward, the logo on tags was often set in a box to reflect the new logo
   • Thinner, shiny materials became more common as tags
   • The amount of extra information on all the tags increased significantly at this time, detailing a whole host of care instructions and disclaimers

   How to spot it

   A boxed logo on a thin, shiny tag.

   Value signal

   Modern; priced on the piece.