The Durango area might not bring to mind traditional manufacturing – the kinds of blue-collar industries that built Rust Belt cities such as Detroit and Pittsburgh.
After all, Rosie the Riveter had neither a kayak nor telemark skis.
But quietly, boutique manufacturers have sprung up around the Durango area. They address a specific market. Many of them are in the food and beverage or outdoors industries.
“We’re not making widgets out here,” said Roger Zalneraitis, executive director of the La Plata County Economic Development Alliance. “We’re making specialized or high-end objects that are easy to ship; that’s what can succeed out here.”
Here is a look at eight businesses that overcome the challenges endemic to the isolated Four Corners area to make something: Alpacka Raft, Animas Chocolate Co., Durango Bike Co.. Honeyville, Ruff Puppies, Ska Fabricating, SoundTraxx and Venture Snowboards.
Some larger homegrown manufacturers, such as Osprey Packs and StoneAge Waterblast Tools, now do most of their manufacturing elsewhere.
Manufacturing remains a minor industry in the region. The Region 9 Economic Development District of Southwest Colorado said in a report in February that manufacturing accounts for 577 jobs in the five counties of Southwest Colorado.
That was much less than the tourism industry, for example, which supported 8,536 jobs.
“We don’t have a lot of manufacturers out here, but the ones we do have have really compelling stories,” Zalneraitis said.
The manufacturers face many of the same issues: expensive and inadequate industrial space, high shipping costs and a shortage of skilled machinists and other specialized workers.
“I might put an ad out for a machinist and get one résumé in a month,” said Matt Vincent, co-owner of Ska Fabricating.
Ed Morlan, executive director of Region 9, said some manufacturers end up in the area for what is called “amenity migration.”
“People move here for amenities, and they happen to be a manufacturer,” he said.
That certainly describes the story of Durango Bike Co. Owner Jeff Estes, who started his company in Durango at the base of Horse Gulch, where customers can try out his custom-made mountain bikes on the backyard trails.
“We wanted to be in Colorado,” Estes said. “And there’s no place in Colorado as good as Durango.”
cslothower@durangoherald.com
