Small Company, Big Technology
Fishing waders—pretty low-tech product, right? Wrong. Simms works with advanced materials to make its products warm, durable, and breathable. Simms runs the only manufacturing facility in the U.S. (one of only three in the world) approved for making Gore-Tex fishing waders. “Though a small company, Simms is a very strategic partner for us,” says Brad Yeomans of the brand's maker, W.L. Gore & Associates. “People who wear Simms waders expose Gore-Tex products to some of the toughest environments possible—so we look to Simms to give us insight that helps us make our materials the very best available.”
Owner K.C. Walsh on how Simms does it:
We hold patents on six innovations, license three others (two exclusively), and have filed for six additional patents. In addition to our relationship with Gore, we use the technology of Malden Mills (maker of Polartec) and Schoeller Textiles of Switzerland—and have leveraged the resources of Montana State University to implement world-class manufacturing and inventory management processes.