Aug 22, 2007

Easy being green: Outdoorsman launches natural skincare brandBy Dan ProchiloMontclairTimes.com

Capitalizing on consumers’ growing zeal for all things “green,” Montclair entrepreneur Justin Klabin, already second-in-command at a father/son fragrance company, has embarked on a new venture that makes all-natural goods for devotees of the outdoors.

The brand for his startup business, Klabin Design, has been dubbed “63-North,” after the latitude of Mt. McKinley, Alaska. At 20,320 feet, it’s North America’s highest peak, but that’s only part of the reason Klabin chose it for the name.

It also sounded catchy.

“I’ve never been to Mt. McKinley,” he said, “but now I have to go.”

Regardless, the company name and slogan — “Play hard, live green” — sums up Klabin’s Theodore Roosevelt-like way of life, a blend of passionate athleticism and naturalism.

An outdoor-sports and exploring enthusiast, Klabin, 32, has a bachelor’s degree in environmental science and a master’s in exercise science. His new company has pledged to donate 1 percent of its gross sales to environmental organizations worldwide through a program called “1 Percent for the Planet.”

“It all goes hand-in-hand for me,” said Klabin, a Montclair resident for the past two years. “It’s a lifestyle.”

Concern for personal health should go beyond an interest in one’s own physical well-being, extending to the health of the community and the earth overall, he said.

The new company makes merchandise Klabin said he would want to use, and which embody his passions.

The personal-care products, such as his line of lotions and lip balms, are composed of all-natural, mainly plant-derived ingredients, and they’re placed in minimal, recyclable packaging. His suppliers are largely U.S. companies, benefiting the domestic economy.

There’s also a 63-North clothing line of shirts, caps, bags and other apparel bearing the logo — organic-branded, of course.

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