The corporate "bottom line" has long stood as the yardstick for business success, but Loveland-based apparel company
Tulong is effectively redefining that index with a "triple bottom line" commitment that goes well beyond financial performance.
According to President and CEO Mark Heiman, Tulong's three-pillared pledge of responsibility "to people, to planet and to prosperity" is the standard of success set by the clothing manufacturer.
Tulong (which means "help" in Filipino), was founded in 2008 by Heiman, Alan Brown (COO), and Christie Brown (CFO), when the trio decided to form a company that would weave their combined textile and business expertise into their common vision to improve lives and to help "give back."
Together, Heiman- a patent-holding textile innovator with over 30 years of executive experience in the industry, Alan Brown-a visual media and design expert, and his wife Christie, the company's finance and business expert, set out on what they now refer to as the "Tulong journey."
For two years the team devoted itself to finding and qualifying suppliers and partners who shared their values of social responsibility through what Heiman refers to as a "best practices approach," in which prospective partners undergo an "intensive review process" aimed at certifying the materials used and the processes employed in manufacturing their products.
"We have heard many, many times, 'No one has ever asked us for that information before,' " says Heiman proudly.
Born of that diligence is their recently unveiled
Repair the World clothing brand- a high quality line of apparel made from sustainable resources such as recycled colored cotton and recycled polyester made from plastic bottles.
Consisting of fashionable active and leisure wear for all ages- including T-shirts, hoodies, yoga and sleepwear- the Repair the World® clothing brand is Tulong's aptly-named vehicle for triple bottom line success.
As evidence of that, just as the brand was making its August debut at the country's largest apparel tradeshow in Las Vegas, an announcement was made by non-profit organization
Friendship Bridge that Tulong had pledged a percentage of their profits to the support of the non-profit's microcredit and educational programs. It appears the "Tulong journey" has already come full circle.
Writer: Alyce Vilines
Source: Tulong President and CEO Mark Heiman
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