UK-based Equip Outdoor Technologies will discontinue Lowe Alpine's apparel line after this fall/winter season so it can focus resources on its established Rab technical apparel brand and Lowe Alpine packs.
 
Equip Outdoor CEO Matt Gowar confirmed by e-mail Thursday that fall/winter 2014-15 will be the last season for the apparel line, which was launched Globally in Fall 2013.  Employees who were designing apparel for Lowe Alpine In Kendal in the United Kingdom will be reassigned to further strenghten the Rab Clothing design team.


“The Group's office in Lousiville CO has been focused primarily on Rab clothing and Lowe Alpine packs, so there will no impact there,” Goward wrote.


Equip Outdoor partnered with a private equity firm to buy Lowe Alpine for an undisclosed ammount in the second quarter of 2011 and re-launched its apparel line in Spring 2013. In September, 2013 Equip Outdoor announced it had sold its Podsacs brand to online bike retailer Planet X to focus on Rab and Lowe Alpine.

“This is a strategic decision, which allows every part of the business to play to its strengths,” Gowar said in a written statement. “While the re-launched Lowe Alpine clothing sold in well and has been very well reviewed in the media, it became clear that the targets we had set ourselves were unlikely to be achieved in the time scales we wanted.”