ROC Gear Inc., manufacturers of Mad Water waterproof gear, announced Evernew Inc. as the new Mad Water distributor for Japan. Based in Tokyo, Japan, Evernew will distribute the full range of waterproof bags and backpacks in the Mad Water product line.
This distribution agreement will include both the Classic Roll-Top and Extreme Submersible ranges of products. The cooperation between ROC Gear and Evernew allows ROC Gear to market its USA-made Extreme Submersible products to an ever growing global market appreciative of the quality offered by USA-made goods, said the company.
The Mad Water product line offers a range of waterproof duffel bags, dry bags, and waterproof backpacks. But the crown jewel of the Mad Water product line is the Waterproof USA Duffel, designed and manufactured in-house at ROC Gear in Commerce, Georgia. This distributorship is just the next step at making Georgia-based Mad Water a global brand. “We are happy to announce this step in the growth of Mad Water” claims Jay Buell, CEO of ROC Gear, Inc. “and we are proud to work with a company like Evernew, that has such a long history in Japan’s outdoor market.”
Originally operating out of a small Tokyo store front in the 1920s, today Evernew manufactures premium camping accessories for the world-wide outdoor market, and distributes into Japan a group of premium global sports and outdoor brands. Mr. Shinsuke Iijima of Evernew claims, “Mad Water products have huge potential and can be used in many different outdoor applications. We are very much honored to become a distributor of such a unique and innovative brand.”
Coincidentally, there is another tie back to Tokyo, Japan. The supplier for Mad Water’s extreme submersible zippers is the global fastener manufacturer YKK. And while these USA-made specialty waterproof zippers come from YKK’s Macon, Ga., manufacturing facility, the family that owns YKK has much different roots. The YKK company was birthed out of Tokyo, Japan in the 1930s, just a decade after Evernew opened its first store there in Tokyo. And still today, both Evernew and YKK have their headquarters in Tokyo Japan – a short 20 minute drive apart.
