Columbia Sportswear Company Announces Acquisition of Montrail, Inc. Footwear Brand

PORTLAND, Ore., Jan. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Columbia Sportswear Company (NASDAQ: COLM) , a global leader in the active outdoor apparel and footwear industries, today announced that it has acquired substantially all of the assets of Montrail, Inc. for cash consideration of $15 million plus the assumption of certain liabilities.

Montrail is recognized around the world as a premium outdoor footwear brand with a reputation for delivering technical, high performance trail running, hiking, and climbing footwear for outdoor enthusiasts. It is a brand best known for its commitment to creating a best-fit, high performance and high quality product and has been recognized in the SNEWS Outdoor Retailer Survey as both the best selling men's and best selling women's footwear brand in the outdoor specialty channel.

"We see this as an exciting opportunity for both Montrail and Columbia. Montrail is known for making authentic, premium footwear products for the outdoor enthusiast and the brand has an excellent reputation for fit, quality and use of technology in its footwear," said Tim Boyle, President and CEO of Columbia Sportswear. "We understand the unique value, positioning and integrity of the Montrail brand and we believe we can leverage our sourcing, logistics, and capital strength to develop even more opportunities for the Montrail product. Leveraging the performance and fit characteristics of the Montrail branded products will improve the fit and quality of our other footwear brands as well."

"The acquisition of Montrail adds a pinnacle brand to the Columbia portfolio of footwear. Montrail carved its niche in the specialty outdoor market by creating a better fit and pioneering high performance lightweight footwear," said Menno van Wyk, CEO of Montrail, Inc. "Superior products will continue to be a hallmark of the Montrail brand. Columbia's sourcing, worldwide distribution systems, and efficient operations will give Montrail products a competitive advantage. In particular, the Columbia infrastructure will help us to design and develop ever-better Montrail products and more efficiently deliver them into the hands of discerning users."

Brad Gebhard, Vice President of Footwear at Columbia, will now be responsible for design and merchandising for all of the company's footwear brands including Columbia, Montrail, and Sorel. Scott Tucker, former President of Montrail, Inc., will lead the Montrail brand as General Manager.

About Columbia Sportswear Company

Founded in 1938 in Portland, Oregon, Columbia Sportswear Company is a global leader in the design, sourcing, marketing and distribution of active outdoor apparel and footwear. As one of the largest outerwear brands in the world and the leading seller of skiwear in the United States, the Company has developed an international reputation for quality, performance, functionality and value. The Company manages a portfolio of outdoor brands including Columbia Sportswear, Mountain Hardwear, Sorel, and Montrail. To learn more about Columbia please visit the Company's web site at http://www.columbia.com/.

About Montrail

The Seattle, Washington-based company, established in 1993, manufactures and sells its products to retailers in the United States and in 29 countries worldwide. In 1996, Montrail embarked on a mission to improve the standard for comfort and fit in footwear by creating IntegraFit(TM), its proprietary fit technology. To learn more about Montrail, please visit http://www.montrail.com/.

This press release contains forward-looking statements such as the statements regarding future opportunities. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in these and other forward-looking statements as a result of a number of risks and uncertainties, including those described in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2005, under the heading "Factors That May Affect Our Business and the Price of Our Common Stock." Risks and uncertainties that may affect our future opportunities include our ability to fully and cost-effectively integrate the Montrail business into our existing operations. We do not undertake any duty to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this release to conform them to actual results or to changes in our expectations.

FCMN Contact: tcollins@columbia.com