Club KO™
Not Just for Kids
by Barbara Henry
Whenever Cindy Eeson shopped for clothes for her three daughters, aged 2, 3, and 5, she
was always attracted to the high-quality European designs. They were stylish, comfortable,
durable and easy to care for. She began to think about how she could make clothes like
these for her children at a much lower
cost.
In 1987, Cindy was a stay-at-home mom, having worked for two years as an attorney for an
oil and gas company in Calgary. During her years in corporate law she met her husband
Ralph, an oil and gas securities lawyer. Cindy's boss offered to hold her job open for her
for a year after her maternity leave, but Cindy knew she didn't want to return to law.
This became especially clear to her when her husband came home with news of a part-time
legal position and wanted to know if she would be interested in going back to work now
that their youngest child was two years old. Cindy did not want to leave the girls, so she
began to plan something she could do from home. Sewing and design had always been her
hobbies, and the idea for creating high-quality children's clothing came to her. She sewed
as she watched the girls play.
Cindy's criteria for her clothing were that it should be, "Comfy cotton,
pull-on/pull-off, easy care and easy wear." She tried her designs out on friends (and
their children); they encouraged her to start her own business. She made a list of her
strengths and weaknesses, made a business plan and started sewing her own line of
children's clothing.
Cindy's enthusiasm for her new project spread; soon she was working with a close friend
who lived 1,000 miles away. She would pack up pieces and send them on the bus to her
friend who sewed them in her home. After Cindy and her friend had manufactured about 200
pieces, they had their first show in November 1987. Since Cindy hadn't really worked out a
presentation yet, it was a kind of children's fashion show held in an open-house format.
The budding entrepreneurs sold $2,000 that night!
Cindy was really excited. She knew that the clothes were on target and marketable. It
appeared that what she thought would be a "hobby business" could actually become
quite profitable. "My sister-in-law was my first hostess, and at that show I got my
first recruit, who is still with the company, Club KO Clothing Club Inc., and is one of
our top five producers. My cousin was also one of my first six recruits." The company
grew and was incorporated in February 1988. Cindy's mother was very helpful; she came for
extended visits and updated the company's bookkeeping, in addition to baking goodies for
her grandchildren.
Cindy had a vision of the future. Club KO has since expanded its clothing line to include
women's casual fashions and even some father/son look-alike ensembles. Cindy says that
there may be more casual, comfy-wear for men in future collections.
What makes Club KO clothes so special? Cindy is committed to using high-quality, mostly
cotton fabrics that are usually found only in more expensive designer clothing. Club KO
clothes are designed for durability, fade resistance and mix and matchability. The navy
shirt you bought last summer will match the navy pants you buy this summer. This allows
children to choose their own clothes, building creativity and self-esteem; any combination
they pick out will look great on both children and moms. Most Club KO waists are
adjustable to fine tune fit and allow you to keep your favorite pair of pants going from
season t season and child to child. Pants also have special roll-up grow cuffs, which can
be rolled up without seams showing because of double-fabric cuffs. KO also has exclusive
"elephant knees," which are so strong and tough that when you iron them to the
inside of a child's romper or pant, the knees will not wear out. Club KO clothes are
manufactured on the premises of the Canadian headquarters in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Local production means high-quality products for the consumer.
What are the benefits to Consultants? Cindy says, "The product appeal is very high,
there is no similar product in competition, and no market saturation anywhere means
opportunities for rapid advancement. Show averages are among the highest in the industry,
so Consultants earn well right from the start." And, of course, the Club KO
opportunities allows women to work from their homes and be with their children. Something
so important to Cindy that she started the company to stay at home with her daughters.
What makes Club KO so great for Cindy? "Everything," she says. "Don't make
me choose! I love our wonderful, unique product; our warm, caring head office group; and
our very nurturing and caring field - they're all moms!" As President of Kids Only,
Cindy oversees the Marketing and Sales department, designs clothing and travels to visit
her Consultants and speak at their meetings. Cindy thinks recognition is important, so she
also writes congratulatory letters and phones Consultants to recognize outstanding
achievement. Her work ethic is, "Be fair, be honest and always give your best."
Cindy says that she is determined, tenacious, persistent, obstinate, optimistic, loves
people, loves sharing and coaching, and that she knows most of her strengths and
weaknesses. Her advice to other business women: "Don't give up, learn from others,
follow your instincts and only do jobs you are good at; delegate everything else."
