About Us

The idea behind Spiritex is simple: To create designer clothing in America that is made ethically and without harmful chemicals that can harm you or the environment.

Spiritex was founded in Asheville in 2003 to provide organic cotton apparel to various wholesale buyers. Since then, we have taken a more localized, direct to retail direction, producing the entirety of our clothing within a 120-mile radius of our downtown Asheville retail store. Spiritex is continuously committed to manufacturing clothing with the best quality organic cotton, sustainable fibers and recycled polyester within the Carolinas.

The inspiration for our clothing comes from the relationships we have with people and the environment. From our cotton farmers in Texas, to the flora, animals and mountains of western North Carolina, we design clothing in a way to convey the relationships we have with everything surrounding us.

Meet the founders :

Spiritex was founded in 2003 by one of the pioneers of the organic cotton movement. Beginning with EcoSport in 1990, Daniel Sanders and Marylou Marsh were the first to introduce organic cotton to the mass retail market, creating wholesale, basic clothing. After selling the company in 2002, Daniel and Marylou moved to Asheville to start a truly different type of clothing company -- one which takes organic and sustainable fibers and makes designer, handmade clothing here in America.

The husband and wife team

MaryLou Marsh & Daniel Sanders:

Marylou Earned a BA degree in fine arts from William Paterson University. She garnered several awards in statewide competitions for her sculptures and oil paintings. She subsequently attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn where she studied graphic arts, and also completed a fashion design program at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in NYC.

In 1979 she co-founded “Sardine Productions”, which was a graphic design and silk-screen company located in Brooklyn, NY. Major accounts included Rolling Stone and Forbes magazine. The company focused primarily in the music industry and did merchandising and design work for legendary New York bands such as: the Dictators, Twisted Sister, and the Ramones. Marylou’s contacts in the music industry led to a consulting position with A&M records working in band image and talent development She was well known in the “new wave” music scene for her hip dancing style and was hired by celebrities such as Rene Russo to develop “street dancing” skills.

In 1984 Marylou formed “ML Marsh Designs”, a better woman’s sportswear collection, along with partner Daniel Sanders. She had a long-standing desire to put her fashion design skills into play and the company began by creating garments that were unique and clever combinations of fabric and fit. One fleece jacket sold over 1,000 dozen units in the first two seasons, a remarkable achievement for a new design house. ML Marsh also was one of the first companies to offer seamless bodies for the imprinting industry, which worked well for Japanese artists such as Nakazawa. Marylou won awards for her designs such as the prestigious “Tommy” award in the dress category.

In 1990, in deference to her concerns about the environment, Marylou co-founded “Ecosport Inc.” with partners Daniel Sanders and Edward Mandeau. Marylou was among the first designers to work with organic cotton fabrics as the company was on the cutting edge of the eco-fashion industry. In the early ‘90’s, Ecosport was the largest and most dynamic producer of organic cotton in the world and responsible for helping to start organic cotton programs for several large companies such as: Patagonia, Levi’s, Danskin, Coldwater Creek and Nike. As on officer of the corporation and director of art and design, Marylou was instrumental in the growth of Ecosport and the development of the various private label programs.

After the sale of Ecosport in 2000 to Gaiam, a publicly traded Broomfield CO based company, Marylou turned her focus to oil painting. Her paintings are skillfully crafted pieces with imaginative and relevant themes that due to attention to detail often require weeks to create. Although little attempt has been made to market her work, her pieces have hung in national galleries and reproductions have sold to private collectors.

Marylou has recently resumed designing apparel for a company started by her and husband Daniel called, “Happy Home Inc.”, which trades under the brand name “Spiritex”. The company’s current focus is primarily marketing knit piece goods and basic garment styles for embellishment. However, the company has a retail presence that Marylou has been incubating and for which she has created the interior design elements. Plans include a roll out of the stores and web based direct to retail ventures.

Marylou is the proud mom of two children and lives in Asheville North Carolina. Marylou coaches youth soccer and is a certified tennis instructor. Her most significant volunteer and support efforts have been extended to the non-profit organizations Population Connection, U.S. Department of Peace, and NARAL. She relishes being outdoors and creating in various art mediums. Marylou enjoys studying nature, dancing, skiing, astronomy, and cooking. She particularly likes reading about and pursuing teachings concerning personal and spiritual growth. She can also give a good haircut and throw a mean Frisbee.