It’s taken astronaut-grade technology, but the function of a puffer jacket has been completely reversed by Tiger Beer.

A partnership with fashion designer Izzy Du has delivered the ‘TIGER summer puffer’ to bring the winter staple to new demographics, its style inspired by real tigers with inclusions of vibrant orange, tiger ears, fangs and a subtle stripe.

Though based in Singapore, Tiger Beer has a strong presence across the hottest landscapes of Asia, where traditional puffers are hardly ideal. 

“The puffer jacket is one of fashion’s hottest items amongst Gen Z and millennials across Asia but there’s one challenge: it can’t be worn in the heat of the tropics. At Tiger we have been defying the odds since 1932 by brewing beer in tropical weather when others said it couldn’t be done,” says Sean O’Donnell, global brand director at Tiger Beer.

“Tiger Crystal refreshes you when you’re on fire, so why not make a puffer jacket with a beer-powered cooling system that does just that?”

The specialty item was created with the help of BBH Singapore and LePub APAC. It launches at Du’s pop-up at Paris Fashion Week when it kicks off on 25 September, where it is available for attendees to try on, but it will continue to appear at marketing activations in the future.

The Tiger puffer that cools

Whatever Co., a creative studio in Japan, designed the beer-powered cooling technology within the jacket. Chilled water is pumped around the wearer by a web of silicone tubes, which make contact with key points where the arteries are closest to the skin. According to Tiger Beer, the puffer can cool wearers down by up to 5 degrees Celsius when in the sun.

“Inspired by the same tech that keeps astronauts cool in extreme temperatures, we tried a variety of cooling system designs, each making the jacket more effective at keeping the wearer cool for as long as possible,” says Masashi Kawamura, chief creative officer at Whatever Co. 

“We even had a trial run where the jacket became too cold to wear, and we had to tune it down to get it to the right temperature,” he says.

After debuting in Paris the jacket will face a greater challenge at ZoukOut in December 2023, which is Asia’s longest-running dance music festival that takes place in the tropical heat of Singapore. 

Heineken is also targeting the Gen Z demographic with a creative beer campaign. Read about its digital nickname ads with oOh!Media here.