DownEast opens in Twin Falls, looking to expand

Businesses that begin with family can either succeed or fall apart depending on the attitude, commitment and personalities of the partners.

DownEast Outfitters began as a family business in 1991, and is still family owned and operated nearly 20 years later.

The Freedman brothers, William, Charles and Jonathan, originally founded DownEast as a retailer of off-price clothing as a way of keeping themselves employed and paying for their schooling at the university in Provo, Utah.

By purchasing and reselling customer returns and liquidations from top retail brands found on the East Coast, they brought them to the Intermountain West, sold them in their store, and established themselves as a trendy, fashion-conscious retailer. The company name grew out of the region where they were raised.

Jonathan Freedman said, “We’ve found our affordability to be the key differentiator that’s allowed us to grow where many other retail companies are experiencing shrinkage in a challenging economy.”

In 2005, the company added its own private-label brand, DownEast Basics. The line has become incredibly popular with DownEast’s customer base, which is growing quickly. Since January, DownEast has opened and/or redesigned five stores in Utah, including locations in Provo, Salt Lake City, Davis County and St. George. DownEast has also expanded farther west, adding new retail locations in Arizona and California since December.

DownEast Outfitters received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2009 Award in the retail and consumer products category for Utah and southern Idaho.

Charlie Freedman, general counsel for DownEast, said, “We attribute a lot of DownEast’s success over the past 18 years to our dedicated and loyal corporate management team.”

Rich Israelsen, COO, has been with the company since its early stages and has been critical to the company’s operations, and many of the director-level employees have also been with the store for 7-8 years or more.

The fast-growing retailer has expanded and now operates nationally with its Basics line via its online store in addition to 43 locations throughout the West including Utah, California and Idaho.

Most recently it has expanded and is opening a store in Twin Falls.

“We’re excited to be in the Magic Valley Mall among top retailers like American Eagle, Aeropostale and Macy’s,” Israelsen said. “We’ve operated a mall kiosk there for the last several years and have enjoyed a very high local demand for our styles. When the new, 1,900-square-foot plus retail space became available, it was a logical decision to open in Twin Falls, giving local shoppers greater access to our full product line.”

The Magic Valley Mall store will be DownEast’s eighth location in Idaho. The retailer has five additional store locations in Boise, Rexburg, Idaho Falls and Pocatello, in addition to kiosks at two other retail centers. DownEast plans to continue increasing its retail footprint in Idaho, with plans to open another store in the next 12 months.

Israelsen said the Rexburg store was the second store the brothers opened and has always been a stalwart in the chain.

Even with the expansive growth, he said many of the employees who have been with the company for any length of time feel this is like family.

“It still feels like a family business,” he said. “It feels like we’ve grown as a family, where those who have been with us for as many as nine years are truly a family.”

He added the family feeling continues throughout the company as associates grow and learn the business, leave to take positions at other larger companies and then return.

“As we’ve grown, it’s been nice to bring them back into the business and use their skills here,” he said.