Posted 02.01.2009

Colorado cool stuff

BELLE BABY CARRIERS
Seth Murray was working on a master’s in engineering management at CU-Boulder and came up with a business plan for a baby-carrier manufacturer for a class project. “I just kept at it after the class,” says Murray, a veteran of the outdoor industry. He worked with industrial designer Mark LeBeau, then his co-worker at Trango, a Louisville-based climbing-gear manufacturer. “Together we designed over 50 climbing products,” Murray says. “We’d been in the outdoor industry and had seen so many great backpacks, so we wanted to make a cool baby carrier.” The result, the Belle Baby Carrier, features both shoulder straps and a waist belt that transfers more than half of a baby’s weight from the shoulders to the hips. Today, Murray works full-time at Belle with his wife, Paige. The company enjoyed 300 percent sales growth in 2008. “It’s picking up,” Murray says. “We’re doing well at Target.com and BabiesRUs.com — a good sign for getting into their brick-and-mortar stores.” $89.95 to $99.95 retail. Made by Belle Baby Carriers (a dba for Inventista Inc.), Boulder, (303) 482-2752, www.bellebabycarriers.com. Available at Becoming Mothers, 2525 Arapahoe Ave. in Boulder; a full list of dealers is on the website.

BODY BAR FLEX
Founded in 1987, the Body Bar has evolved from Steve Kelly’s off-season secret as an Olympic kayaker and personal trainer, to the industry standard for group exercise at health clubs nationwide. Now the company is focusing on the international market and hyping the Body Bar Flex. “The resistance is in the flex instead of the weight,” explains Body Bar Managing Director Tim Riley. “It only weighs one pound, but it has 20 pounds of resistance.” Also available is the Body Bar Flex Power, with twice the resistance. Riley says both versions are “fantastic for core strength” and he should know. He’d personally challenged himself last year and lost 30 pounds training with the Body Bar. Body Bar Flex: $35 to $55 retail. Made by Body Bar Systems Inc., Boulder, (800) 500-2030, www.bodybar.com.

OTTERBOX
OtterBox CEO and founder Curt Richardson started making “waterproof and crushproof” boxes for outdoor enthusiasts in 1996, but a different market — techies — soon took over. “We’ve really focused specifically on handheld devices,” he says. OtterBox manufactures in both Colorado and China. The lion’s share of sales is business-to-business; companies like Palm, H-P and Verizon order protective cases for specific PDAs and cell phones. Richardson touts his products’ style — “the James Bond look” — and their toughness. “All these people have BlackBerrys, and our case makes it pretty much indestructible,” Richardson says. On the retail shelves, OtterBox has a wide range of iPhone and iPod cases, including a waterproof version of the latter. “You can swim with it,” says Richardson. The company is booming, growing from 30 to 67 employees in 2008. “We see the same growth pattern in 2009, even in these rough waters.” $19.95 to $49.95 retail. Made by Otter Products LLC, Fort Collins, (888) 695-8820, www.otterbox.com. Available at numerous retailers throughout Colorado.

VODKA 14
Five years ago, Matthew Baris was hosting his friend Jon Weiss, a graphic designer visiting from New York. “I was forcing a lot of local microbrews on him,” Baris says. “A few days later, he said, ‘I’m sick of beer — who makes the local vodka?’” Baris did some research and realized that the nascent micro-distilling industry was light years behind the microbrewery world, then co-founded Altitude Spirits with his father, Mitch. “He called his dad and found out that my great-great-grandfather was a vodka distiller back in Russia,” Baris says. First bottled in 2005, the company’s organic Vodka 14 is distilled in Idaho in the shadow of the Tetons. Weiss designed the logo. It’s since taken off in Colorado — and Nashville, Tenn. — and the company is now five employees strong. “For the first year and a half, I was the only employee,” Baris says. $32 per 750-milliliter bottle retail. Distilled by Altitude Spirits Inc., Boulder, www.vodka14.com. Available at numerous liquor stores in Colorado, including Liquor Mart in Boulder, Applejack Wine & Spirits in Wheat Ridge, Argonaut Wine & Liquor in Denver.