Former T.O. Resident Launches New Line of Gloves

Michael Hale Take a beautiful garden and an already successful Thousand Oaks family; add a motivated son, and you have the beginnings of the success story of Michael Hale and Ethel gloves. At the age of 25, Thousand Oaks native Hale is already an oldschool business success story.

The Hale family, owners of Mechanix Wear, a manufacturer of work gloves in the automotive, hardware, safety and military industries, moved to T.O. in the 1990s. Michael attended Chaminade Preparatory school and later graduated from Babson College before coming home to join the family business.

Inspiration struck when he observed his mother's beautiful garden behind the Thousand Oaks home in which they still live. She always gardened in chunky, uncomfortable work gloves, and Michael realized the need for a new type of glove, made specifically for women's hands. He put his inspiration into action with the experience and resources available to him from his time in the family business.

On April 1, 2008, Ethel gloves was launched. Ethel is a line of stylish yet protective work gloves made specifically to fit the contours of a woman's hand.

Ethel gloves come in breathable, synthetic leather materials for flexibility and lightweight comfort and are designed to protect with an extended cuff and reinforced fingertips. The gloves also come in five different designs.

Photography for the company's brochure and website (www.ethelgloves.com) was shot in his mother's garden at their Thousand Oaks home. The company is looking forward to a big spring season with a nationwide launch in Lowe's stores and 33 Armstrong Garden Centers, which will also be opening a new location in Thousand Oaks on Sept. 19.