Edmund Hillary brand hitting new peaks
An outdoor clothing brand created in memory of Sir Edmund Hillary has opened its first store, with an eye on global expansion. The social enterprise, which donates half of all sales to various charities and philanthropic causes, opened a store at Queenstown Airport at the beginning of the month and plans to open five more this year.
Auckland will become the second home for another New Zealand store, likely in the Commercial Bay precinct currently under construction, followed by two in England — one in London and another in the Midlands.
Edmund Hillary clothing first launched at New Zealand Fashion Week in August last year.
Its products are now sold in other retail stores throughout New Zealand and the UK.
Edmund Hillary co-founder and CEO Mike Hall-Taylor said Queenstown was an obvious location for its physical debut.
The brand has global ambitions for expansion, including opening standalone stores in some of the world’s most affluent ski areas.
“Our initial launch markets are the UK and New Zealand, a bit like the original 1950 expedition — it was a New Zealand-UK thing. It was a British expedition with a Kiwi that climbed to the top,” Hall-Taylor said.
“Having our own stores is quite a key strategy for us,” he said. “Thinking globally, I’d like to have five stores this year and I’d like to have at least 10 by the end of next year.”
Sir Edmund Hillary’s son Peter
We give a pretty large percentage of our sales back to philanthropic causes as Ed would have done. Mike Hall-Taylor
Hillary and Hall-Taylor began seriously developing the high-end luxury outdoor brand together around three years ago.
“We give a pretty large percentage of our sales back to philanthropic causes as Ed would have done,” he said.
“We created our own trust, which a percentage of sales goes into, and we decide how to allocate it. It goes to causes in Nepal but also to causes in New Zealand and the UK, helping under-privileged kids, in particular, who wouldn’t normally get the opportunity to go on certain adventures.”
Millions of dollars to date has been invested into the brand, Hall-Taylor said.
“We’re naturally suited to Alpine resorts that are high end. Queenstown is one but if you think of Aspen in Colorado, Val d’Ise`re in France, Verbier in Switzerland, we’ll naturally find homes in these places with our own stores.”
Airports are also a focus for the brand, he said.
From next week, Edmund Hillary clothing will be sold in the Merino Collection store in Auckland Airport’s international departures terminal.
Hall-Taylor said the brand was looking at ways to spread the production of its clothing to Nepal to help the communities there.
At present they are made in New Zealand, Ecuador, Latvia, Italy and Britain. Its merino beanies and T-shirts are made in Auckland and Dunedin.
Edmund Hillary clothing employs seven fulltime staff.