Marty Carrigan, co-founder of a sales and marketing agency, and Ben Anderson, founder of Icelantic, have founded First Degree to launch a collection of sidecountry-specific boots for skiers who spend their days both inbounds and outside the access gates.
The duo is collaborating with Austrian snowboard boot maker Deeluxe to launch the collection, which adds innovation to the proven three-piece shell by infusing it with a walk and freezone ski mode. With five forward lean adjustment settings, the freezone mode allows skiers to customize the fit and flex of the boot. The shell also features four buckles and a burly powerstrap.
Anderson is handling First Degree’s creative direction and operations from Icelantic’s headquarters in Denver. Carrigan, a cofounder of Sales Guys of Steamboat Springs, CO, directs sales, distribution, and marketing. First Degree will also debut with a strong pro team headlined by Julian Carr.
First Degree is committed to supporting specialty shops through limited distribution.
“We want to build First Degree on quality first and foremost,” said Anderson. “In return, we want to work with the best specialty retailers. During this first year, we are going to collaborate with the top 50 dealers in the country and build lasting partnerships with them. We’re only going to produce a couple thousand boots and work with these fifty dealers to launch First Degree.”
Using the resources and business model developed by Sales Guys, First Degree will work directly with retailers and offer them fifty percent margins, which is unprecedented in hardgoods.
Carrigan is quick to assert, “First Degree is providing innovation not just in boot technology, but also in the marketplace by offering specialty retailers a competitive edge with specialty products and a greater margin and profit contribution to their bottom line.”
