Blue Sky Clothing Company has roots in the Kootenays—recognized for donation to literacy

The company's goal is to produce a line of eco friendly, fair trade natural garments for everyday wear that are affordable.

(L-R) Kim McBurney, Blue Sky human resource manager, Brenda Le Clair, CEO of Decoda Literacy Solution and Blue Sky owner/designer Marilyn Robison with Blue Sky's donation to the charity. — Photo: Blue Sky Facebook page

Here is a Kootenay success story that we don't hear too much about. Marilyn Robinson, now Marilyn Cobban, then a full-time West Kootenay resident, started selling dresses out of her VW van at the Balfour Ferry terminal back in 1998.

That was the genesis of Blue Sky Clothing Co., which now has seven retail locations in western Canada including Nelson, Vancouver, East Vancouver, Kitsilano, their flagship store in North Vancouver, Kamloops, a newly-opened location in Victoria, and yes, a seasonal location still located at the Balfour Ferry Terminal during the busy summer season.

The company's goal is to produce a line of eco friendly, fair trade natural garments for everyday wear, that are affordable and comfortable.

Plus the company has a robust e-commerce website which sells their natural fabric clothing lines world wide.

Owner and designer Marilyn Cobban and her staff recently raised $2821 for a charity called Decoda Literacy Project. The money was raised through a initiative called Socks for Literacy, which saw Blue Sky Clothing Company donate $1.00 from the sale of purple socks over the fall season. The previous year Blue Sky donated another $2807 to the same charity.

Marilyn Cobban resides in North Vancouver and Nelson.