Free masks online from Isolator Fitness
Like many companies, Isolator Fitness in Reading shifted production to help meet public safety needs during a global pandemic. Instead of its popular line of meal prep bags, the company now makes cloth masks exclusively.
And business is booming. Isolator Fitness can’t hire enough workers or get its hands on enough material to keep up with demand.
In ordinary times and with most any other product, one would expect Isolator Fitness to be making a fortune given these market conditions.
Except a lot of the masks are given away for free.
“It’s not the smartest financial decision doing what we’re doing,” said Ryan Hauser, president and CEO of Isolator Fitness, “but we sleep well at night.”
Right now, any person living in the U.S. can visit isomask. net and have two masks sent to their front door for only the price of the shipping and handling.
To date, around 20,000 free masks have gone out the door, said Hauser — 5,000 more than Isolator Fitness initially promised, with no end to the promotion in sight.
“As long as I can get workers, we’re going to ride this out as long as it goes,” said Hauser. “We’ll worry about our business later.
“We don’t have time to sit around. Then people go without masks.”
‘It wasn’t a money venture’
Isolator Fitness initially was one of the tens of thousands of businesses shuttered by Penn
sylvania’s stay-at-home order designed to prevent the spread of COIVD-19.
Rather than watch from the sidelines or attempt to pass off fitness accessories as life-sustaining, the company developed a cloth mask prototype and applied for a waiver.
Four weeks later, Isolator Fitness is back to work, producing 3,000 masks per day, with another 500,000 currently on order, said Hauser.
The masks aren’t all about turning a quick buck though.
“It’s kind of a weird game, to be honest,” said Hauser. “We did 2,000 masks to hospitals at cost. It wasn’t a money venture.”
Hauser estimates anywhere from 100-to-500 free masks are claimed daily, with only a $5.99 shipping and handling charge per two masks.
Merchandise sales aren’t back to normal levels, either, though meal prep bags and other in-stock items are available on the Isolator Fitness website. Their production was temporarily halted anyway to accommodate for the masks. “We’re still selling bags on a daily basis, but we haven’t put a single bag on the production floor,” said Hauser. “We’re just selling stagnant stock.” “We need to keep making more masks.”
The real problem
Every business is facing challenges beyond doing its part to spread of COVID-19. Sales of non-essential goods are down for most. Many more remain shuttered by the stay-at-home order, with no clear reopening date in sight and a bleak economy waiting.
Hauser’s concern isn’t the money Isolator Fitness might be losing though. It’s finding workers to make more masks, and faster. And It’s getting his hands on the materials to meet needs.
Numerous businesses are reporting staffing shortages as a result of coronavirus, and Isolator Fitness is no different.
“You can only help so much if you don’t have the workers,” said Hauser, though he expects another new round of hires to start soon.
Hauser praised his workers for staying on the job during the pandemic.
“It’s 100% pride,” said Hauser. “They’re just performers. They understand the situation.”
Isolator Fitness hopes to increase production by another 2,000-3,000 masks per day. Yet, with materials suppliers also running at double and triple the capacity to keep up with all the new mask makers, the company is “fighting like crazy” for every thread.
Yet, when asked by one customer whether Isolator Fitness could meet demand, Hauser left no doubt.
“I told them, ‘Don’t get a back-up supplier,’” said Hauser. “We’ll make it happen.”