SheFly moves company headquarters to Gunnison

On Jan. 5, SheFly Apparel, a women’s outdoor clothing brand from Vermont, announced that it was moving its company headquarters to Gunnison. The company will begin hiring staff in February.

SheFly’s pants, created by women, feature a concealed second zipper that extends from the first, allowing the wearer to unzip and relieve themselves without exposing skin to the elements, offering privacy “on the trail, in the woods or anywhere else nature may call,” the SheFly website says. 

In addition to receiving financial support from the state, SheFly also received a $75,000 grant from the City of Gunnison in September as the company fielded competing offers from locations in Washington and Vermont. In return for city funding, the small start-up agreed to move to Gunnison with the intent of creating 12 primary jobs with a minimum wage of $50,000 within the community by 2026. 

Gunnison Mayor Diego Plata said SheFly went into “uncharted territory” when the business made the grant request, but believes they will bring the money the city invested back into the community. 

“I think Western has a real opportunity to then keep some of its alumni here with high paying jobs, rather than losing them to other markets once they graduate as a result of what will hopefully become a much more diversified and robust economy,” Plata said.  

Last spring, SheFly was one of four companies selected to participate in the ICELab’s Moosejaw Outdoor Accelerator, a competitive 8-week mentoring program, designed to help entrepreneurs build and connect their companies with the outdoor recreation industry — one that has continued to grow in the Gunnison Valley. The ICELab is located on the Western campus and is part of the Tourism and Prosperity Partnership, funded by a local lodging tax.

The ICELab’s mission is “to create more high paying jobs in Gunnison County,” said ICELab Director David Assad. “And we think that’s exactly what these will be,” Assad said. SheFly will offer jobs that will include sales, marketing and design, the “kind of jobs that are going to be needed in our valley to keep the economy moving.”

“It's really exciting to have them move here,” Assad said. “The ICELab and our mentor network put a lot of time and effort into making this place feel like home and showing that this place does have resources for the outdoor industry companies.”

Along with creating new jobs, “what we're trying to build is an environment that we would describe as an outdoor industry hub,” Assad said. “That will benefit the local outdoor industry companies, which we have many of already — PACT Outdoors, Campfire Ranch, Romp Skis and Matchstick Productions — as well as any newcomers like SheFly.”

SheFly Co-founder and CEO Georgia Grace Edwards moved to Gunnison in May. When she isn't working, she is excited to keep diving into all the things the Gunnison Valley has to offer, trying mountain biking and backcountry skiing for the first time. She joked that so far, Gunnison winters are not worse than Vermont winters. 

“It feels good to finally be able to announce our move and share the love that we have for this place with a wider audience,” Edwards said. 

The company, which previously only offered black pants, is releasing new colors, each named for a different place that’s been important to the SheFly journey, Edwards said. “Juneau Jade,” is a nod to the Mendenhall Glacier, where Edwards thought of the idea and “Champlain Teal” is a reference to Champlain Lake in Vermont, where the founders built the business while at Middlebury College. 

“We've renamed our original colorway “Black Canyon” in honor of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison where we’re entering a new phase of business, and welcoming a growing team,” she said.

SheFly’s small current team will be operating out of the ICELab’s co-working space for the near future and plans to start accepting applications for job postings next month. The company’s goal is to hire 50% of its workforce locally. 

“To not offer a remote setting is kind of unheard of if major companies are letting people work from anywhere,” Edwards said. “It'll be hard for startups to have the kind of sway to demand that employees move. But the Gunnison Crested Butte Valley is a dream location for anyone working in the outdoor instudy and anyone wanting to spend more time outside in general, so we’re excited to show it off and recruit where we can. Each of our job descriptions will mention a preference for living in Gunnison and being part of the awesome community here.” 

While the company tries to fill its needs in the Gunnison Valley, Edwards said SheFly will also continue to build a relationship with Western Colorado University. She recently spoke to leadership classes, judged a student pitch competition and established a student internship — an opportunity she hopes to keep expanding as the business grows. 

“A big part of my entrepreneurial journey was gaining exposure to this possibility and learning about how to do this in college and soon after through accelerator programs like Moosejaw’s,” Edwards said. “That's what I'm back here at my college doing. I’m speaking on panels, lecturing classes, meeting with students and running workshops about how to start a business from a dorm room and demonstrating what that looks like. Those are the same kinds of initiatives I'm hoping to give back to this community.”

(Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@gunnisontimes.com.)