EAST PROVIDENCE – Products bearing the brand names of Colibri and Seth Thomas are back in the marketplace.
Alliance Time, Colibri’s parent company based in New York City, announced today that approximately 50 former employees of the bankrupt Colibri Group were hired by the new management team to replenish the Colibri line, as well as the products of Seth Thomas Clock Co., the oldest clock manufacturer in the United States. The Colibri line includes lighters, accessories for men, jewelry, executive gifts and flasks.
Seifert Systems Invests in Energy Efficiency to Strengthen Operations
For manufacturers, energy is more than just another operating expense. It plays a critical role…
Learn More
“Now that we’ve been able to return the Colibri and Seth Thomas brands back to their rightful places on store shelves, we are encouraged by the warm reception they are getting from retailers and customers alike,” said Eli Katz, president of Colibri.
The company also acquired exclusive distribution rights for the Tonino Lamborghini brand of lighters and smoking accessories, adding another line of products to its collection.
Colibri in East Providence, serving as the umbrella organization for the three brands, is currently taking orders and shipping merchandise, with a sales force in the field to market the products to mid-sized and large retailers, national chains and high-volume e-commerce sites, the company said.
Colibri recently established offices in Hong Kong and Belgium to manage international supply and demand. In addition, Colibri is handling Colibri and Seth Thomas consumer product returns for warranty or repair.
Planning to expand its position in the marketplace, the new Colibri management is developing future product lines under the Colibri and Seth Thomas brand banners. In addition, Alliance Time said, discussions are continuing with a number of former Colibri Group employees to explore hiring possibilities under the new parent company structure.
Alliance Time, a privately held retail distribution company on Madison Avenue, acquired the inventory of goods, intellectual property and trademarks for the Colibri and Seth Thomas brands in March (READ MORE). The Colibri Group, which had its headquarters in East Providence, closed in January after a Manhattan private equity firm successfully petitioned R.I. Superior Court to force the company into receivership.
About 280 Colibri workers at three plants in Rhode Island lost their jobs. Some workers were arrested at subsequent protests at the East Providence plants. Charging that they were laid off without the 60-day notice required by federal law, former Colibri employees have filed suit in federal court, seeking 60 days’ worth of back pay and benefits. The Seth Thomas company was a subsidiary of the Colibri Group.
