Bend Magazine

Central Oregon Life and Style

Subscribe to Bend Magazine
Digital Issues Renew Subscribe
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Adventure
  • News & Features
    • Business
    • Community
    • Culture
    • Heritage
  • Food & Drink
    • Beer & Libations
    • Restaurant Guide
  • Events
    • Things To Do Around Bend This Week
    • Giveaways
    • Calendar
  • Bend Home + Design
    • Digital Issues
    • Resource Guide
  • Back Issues
  •  $0.00 - 0 items
You are here: Home / Business / Makers of Sunscreen that Goes the Distance

Makers of Sunscreen that Goes the Distance

Published July 25, 2016

Austin Britts has been visiting Bend since he was 10 when his family started coming up from California for ski races at Mt. Bachelor. But when the CEO and co-founder of Zealios, a personal products company for athletes, was considering moving here last year, he wondered whether the ski town of his childhood would also be a good fit for his company.

The answer was a resounding yes. Britts connected with the Oregon Outdoor Alliance, Bend Outdoor Worx and some local outdoor companies. “The rest is history,” he said. “We were absolutely stunned by the cohesion and support of the Bend business community.”

Britts and his co-founder, Kevin Fuller, started Zealios in 2009. They wanted to make a better waterproof, sweat-proof, zinc-based sunscreen. “We’ve always placed performance as our key objective,” said Britts. “While the industry is trending toward natural and organic ingredients, we have [also] steered toward formulations that perform the best. For instance, what good is an all-natural sunscreen that comes off in the water or when you start to sweat?”

The company has found a natural market among endurance athletes, and especially triathletes, who find themselves in the sun and in the pool on a regular basis. Britts and Fuller appreciate these athletes’ passion. “Having played rugby at the highest level in the USA, I think Kevin and I identify with their competitive spirit,” he said.

This past year, Zealios product sales have taken off. “We are working hard to cement ourselves within the endurance culture and want to be a household name within the community,” said Britts. “We have a long way to go, but given our recent growth the future sure feels bright.”  — Kelly Kearsley

Share This Article
« Native Artist Featured – American Indian Artist Lillian Pitt
Sisters Cascade Polo Club Gallery »
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Newsletter

Sign Up Here

sponsor

Best Restaurants in Bend Central Oregon
  • Bend-
  • La Pine-
  • Madras-
  • Maupin-
  • Prineville-
  • Redmond-
  • Sisters-
  • Sunriver

Heritage

The legacy of Bend’s Skyliners ski club lives on

Two dollars was all it took to create one of the most enduring legacies in Bend’s ski history.

Where to Find the Real Haunted Houses of Bend

It was a dark and stormy night…” goes the often-mocked cliché used by wannabe mystery writers.

The Other Quarantine: A Bend Family’s Fight to Overcome Polio

Like coronavirus, the first major outbreak of polio in the U.S. struck in New York, in 1916. The scourge spread west, gripping the country with fear along its trajectory.

We also recommend

5 places to snowshoe near Bend this winter

A hot toddy with a twist from Bend’s Pine Tavern

How former NFL star Vernon Davis joined Riff Coffee’s advisory board

Bend’s Richard James Yozamp brings street art home

Somewhere That’s Green, Bend’s whimsical new plant store

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2021 · Oregon Media LLC

Bend Magazine: About Us · Contact Us · Advertise
Company: Publisher's Letter · Oregon Media, LLC
Subscribe:
Give a Gift · Subscriptions

Pledge for the Wild

Never see this message again.