Looking to build on its current outdoor and sporting goods product offering, North Carolina company Implus has gone on a spending spree the past few years. Their most recent acquisition is neighboring company Highgear, maker of a variety of outdoor instruments. Implus is the leader in footwear accessories with brands, such as Sof Sole, Airplus, Sof Comfort and Apara, that span the insole, shoecare, lace and sock categories.
Highgear was founded in the Appalachian Mountains in 1999 by outdoor enthusiast Mike Hosey. Mike had a vision of creating his own compact, affordable outdoor instruments. The Highgear product line features multifunctional outdoor instruments such as watches with altimeter, barometer, thermometer, compass, stopwatch and even hydration alarm functionality.
One of the newest Highgear outdoor instruments, the
AltiTech2 (pictured above)
, includes all the features of their watch line but in a carabiner form. The
Adventure Tool
is nice for emergencies, as it comes complete with compass, clock, LED light, thermometer, safety whistle, signaling mirror and magnifying glass to help start fires.
The Highgear acquisition with give Implus a wider variety of products to distribute from its new 252,000 square-foot warehouse complex that the Company moved into last month. Earlier this year, Implus bought hand, body and toe warmer supplier Little Hotties Warmers. In 2007, the Company purchased Yaktrax, the winter traction footwear company, and Sneaker Balls, a line of sports air fresheners.