Our Story

Welcome to Axels online boutique. We feature exquisite collections of cashmere, leather and shearling clothing, European footwear, hand-tooled cowboy boots, one-of-a-kind belt buckles and other unique accessories.

Our life story has shaped who we are today. My wife, Janie, who has worked alongside me since day one, grew up in fairytale surroundings in Connecticut and Barbados. I was raised in Norway, one of the most beautiful countries in the world. In the mid-1970s, a few weeks after we met, we were married and romance and beauty has since filled our lives. This is precisely what we seek to convey through our collections.

We have not made this journey alone. Our two adult children, Candice and Axel Jr, are both now integral to our group. Together, we travel the world in search of ideas. We are also fortunate to have some incredibly talented and passionate associates who often act more as advisors than co-workers.

Please join us in experiencing the beauty and romance we offer.

Our History

As a family we came to the Vail Valley almost 30 years ago in search of a life complete with a balance of work and play. Behind, we left an international business career and ahead lay an option to buy a small mountaineering store. At Vail Mountaineering we sold crampons and fleece, GoreTex and skis, and wow....was it fun! We worked, skied, hiked and climbed. Our business grew, and in 1990 we were fortunate to find our present location, right in the heart of Vail Village.Gradually, our merchandise changed from mountaineering to clothing.

We changed our name in 2005 from the name no one could ever remember, Gore Range Mountain Works, to AXEL'S.

Our Products

Our look is versatile; casual and elegant, sophisticated and rugged. Our clothes, classicly inspired, fit naturally with jeans, but can easily form the basis for a more formal wardrobe. As Luciano Barbera says, "It's not enough to have beautiful clothes. In fact, some people have too many. What matters, is what you do with them." We love color and texture and are committed to finding more of it. We live our dream and we invite you to join.

Philosophy

We sell beautiful clothes for men and women that are made in Europe or the United States. Where we can, we produce our own products or change existing designs to better represent our look. We strive to work with people we like, and we champion individuality. We build relationships with our vendors as we do with our customers. We believe in integrity. Our "modest" objective is to have the best store in the world.