Burlington’s ISIS moving entire operation to Colorado
Burlington’s ISIS sold to St Louis firm | Vermont Business MagazineJan 11, 2010 … Isis. Kellwood Company, a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of premier fashion brands, today announced that it has acquired ISIS, … by Timothy McQuiston ISIS, the Burlington women’s clothier that specializes in apparel for what it calls the ‘outdoor goddess,’ announced yesterday it will move its entire operation to Boulder, CO, the home of its parent company American Recreational Products. ISIS is a national, medium-end designer and marketer of women’s apparel from underwear to outerwear. It employs 14 in Burlington, where it was founded in 1998.Its public relations representative, Scott Kaier of Pale Morning Media in Waitsfield, said that ‘the door is open’ for existing employees to apply for positions in Boulder. He added that in any case CEO Carolyn Cooke will remain with the company through the transition phase and then depart. He said the transition will not be completed until around October of this year, so as not to disrupt the winter apparel season, which is ISIS’ most important.Cooke founded the company with Poppy Gall and named it after the Egyptian goddess of life and magic. Cooke bought out Gall in 2009, but, citing capital needs, Cooke went to an outside investor. According to Cooke in a Vermont Business Magazine article last spring, that situation was not sustainable and the entire company was then sold to Sun Capital Partners Inc in January 2010 for an undisclosed amount, but which essentially covered the debt. Sun rolled ISSI into its Kellwood apparel business out of St Louis, which in turn folded it into American Recreational Products in Boulder. Cooke remained as an employee president and the operations continued in Burlington as essentially an independent entity.A press release issued Thursday afternoon said American Rec anticipates that the ISIS brand will continue to grow and flourish ‘taking full advantage of resources already in place in Boulder, including American Rec’s product development, marketing department, and management team.’‘Here at American Rec, we’re very impressed with ISIS and the work founder Carolyn Cooke and her team have done to envision and create a fantastic line of women’s apparel,’ said Dale Philippi, CEO of American Rec. ‘To ensure the continued success and growth of the brand, we’ve decided to move ISIS to Boulder where we have assembled a dedicated team and created a base of operations worthy of the finest outdoor brands anywhere.Under the newly developed apparel group of American Rec, made up of Royal Robbins, Sierra Designs Apparel, ISIS, and led by Bob Orlando, we hope to create apparel synergies and functional excellence while maintaining specific brand identities. Along with Kellwood and American Rec, Sun Capital owns many high-profile brands in its diversified portfolio, from Friendly’s restaurants to American Standard bath and kitchen fittings to Boston Market restaurants to Hickory Farms and The Limited, another women’s clothier.About American RecAmerican Rec is a collection of eight of the best-known and best-loved brands in the outdoor industry, offering a wide variety of gear to compliment any outdoor pursuit. American Rec’s brand family includes Kelty, Kelty KIDS, Sierra Designs, Royal Robbins, Slumberjack, Wenzel, Ultimate Direction and ISIS. By headquartering these brands in Boulder, American Rec is able to pool both physical and intellectual assets, ensuring the continued growth and success of each individual brand in a highly competitive outdoor marketplace. By drawing upon decades of experience and a love of the outdoors, American Rec develops, tests, and produces some of the finest camping, backpacking, outdoor equipment, and apparel available. Photo of Carolyn Cooke by Faye MurphyRELATED VBM ARTICLES Women as outdoor goddesses: Carolyn Cooke and Isis | Vermont …Apr 16, 2010 … Isis – named after the ancient Egyptian goddess of motherhood, fertility and magic – blends feminine design with cutting-edge technology. …
“We are delighted Edo State has been playing host to this historic race, the first road race in West Africa to get an International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) label status. We are committed to making the race the first IAAF gold label race in West Africa next year after scoring another first as the first IAAF silver label race to be run in Nigeria and the West Africa sub-region in 2018,” said Shaibu who enjoined organisers of the race to keep the flag flying high.In his response, Itemuagbor said the visit of the organisers of the Okpekpe International 10km Road Race was an opportunity to brief the Deputy Governor and the media on their preparations and readiness of the event.“This year’s race will be different from the IAAF silver label race we had in Nigeria last year. Although it is still technically an IAAF silver label race, what Nigerians will witness will be a gold label event because we want to upgrade to a gold label race. We want to be the first IAAF gold label race in West Africa and the second in Africa after the marathon race in Cape Town, South Africa,” said Itemuagbor who expressed delight that he has used the Okpekpe race to proof that Nigerians can organise events that can be classified as truly world-class.“What an IAAF Label denotes are high standards in event organisation and full application of the IAAF competition rules. This we have done and by next year, Okpekpe race will be talked about in the same breath as the London, New York, Dubai, Berlin and Boston marathons. These are gold label IAAF road races,” he said and thanked the Edo State government for throwing its weight behind the race.“One of the factors that has also made the race truly world class is the support we have received from the state government. This is a guarantee demanded by the IAAF and we are delighted we have the heartbeat of the nation, Edo State backing us 100%.We have also demonstrated the commitment demanded by the IAAF to the advancement of the sport and have taken concrete steps in the global fight against doping.”This year’s race will hold on the 25th of this month in Okpekpe, Etsakor East Local Government Area of Edo State.Share this:FacebookRedditTwitterPrintPinterestEmailWhatsAppSkypeLinkedInTumblrPocketTelegram The Edo state government has restated its total support for the historic Okpekpe International 10km Road Race.The state’s Deputy Governor, Rt Hon Phillip Shaibu restated the commitment when the promoter of the race, Mike Itemuagbor and his team paid him a courtesy call at the weekend.Shaibu assured the event organisers of the commitment and continued support of the Edo State government to the race, demanded very good value and the delivery of the essence of the event to the people of Edo State, Nigeria and the international community.