Washington Avenue shop is brand’s first expansion outside southern Minnesota
Faribault Woolen Mill Co. recently opened a store in downtown Minneapolis, the first expansion of its retail footprint outside its headquarters.
The 153-year-old brand, based in an 1892 mill in southern Minnesota, now has a 1,540-square-foot retail shop at Washington & 11th near the Mill District. The brick-and-mortar store opened over the summer as the largely e-commerce and wholesale brand unveils a new website and a new collection of products, much of them geared toward camping and travel.
“Use of our products outside the home – hiking, camping, backpacking – is something we’re particularly excited about. It’s a thrill to see people enjoying Faribault products wherever they go,” CEO Tom Kileen said in a statement.
The shop carries Faribault Woolen Mill’s blankets, throws, scarves, pillows, bags and accessories. The brand’s latest collection features utility blankets made from 75 percent recycled wool and a Scout line, its Civil Ware stripe blankets in blended heather yarn.
Kileen said the company is focusing more on products that can be used daily and beyond the colder months. A few new partnerships bring leather and wool trays, coasters and key chains from Leatherworks Minnesota, as well as candles, to the shop.
The brand, founded in 1865 and relaunched in 2011, produces its wool products in one of the last remaining vertical woolen mills in the country. Today, Kileen said the company distributes to 400–500 retail stores.
Faribault Woolen Mill, 1029 S. Washington Ave., is open 3 p.m.–6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m.–2 p.m.
