Georges Mills, NH, July 2002 - JiBS and Fletcher Ltd. reached and agreement that will add the JiBS brand to Fletcher Ltd.'s current group of footwear, which includes Blundstone, Helix and Undertow.

Terry Fletcher, President of Fletcher Ltd. said, "We are very pleased we were able to buy out JiBS. This will be a great addition to our product lines."

Started in 1997, JiBS is known as a unique line of footwear constructed using the layering principle to keep feet warm, dry and comfortable. The cornerstone piece of the line has been The Splog ®, the first fleece clog in its category. Malden Mills® awarded JiBS the Apex Award tm for Excellence in Design and Function using Polartec® fabric in both 1998 and 2002.

It is a good business decision for both parties. Fletcher Ltd.'s strengths lie in customer service, a strong dealer network and Poppy Fletcher's creativity and footwear expertise. JiBS' strength lies in manufacturing, as well as product design and development.

Designer and owner, Poppy Fletcher, said, "I am excited about bringing the two teams together, which will offer the current JiBS dealers a stronger support system to work with while enabling us to expand our product offering to consumers."

As one of the founders of JiBS, Ivan Davidowitz will stay on as Brand Manager to ensure a smooth transition and continued continuity with the existing dealer network. As part of the Fletcher team, he is currently bringing the Fall/Winter 2002/03 line to market and Poppy Fletcher has developed the new Spring/Summer collection from original prototypes.

The new JiBS Spring/Summer 2003 line draws its inspiration from all things summer with a focus squarely on comfort and ease of use, a JiBS tradition since the company's inception.

Both parties look forward to meeting dealers, mainly to show off the new summer look.

Fletcher Ltd. is the USA distributor for the Blundstone, Helix and Undertow brands. Fletcher Ltd., P.O. Box 58, Georges Mills, NH 03751-0058, 603-763-4772. On the Web at: www.blundstoneusa.com and www.jibs.com.

— Posted by Ari Cheren, MountainZone.com Gear Editor