The Entrepreneurial Venture:

Originating from the Curtis L. Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota, in the fall of 2007, Sixteen Degrees started as a concept for a student run business. Thirteen students, each with their own unique skills and personalities, helped start the business. A business opportunity soon formed when their entrepreneurial spirits paralleled the spirits of their potential customers. This transformed 16 Degrees from an idea to a highly spirited Limited Liability Company (LLC).

What would be their product, and to whom would they be marketing? These questions and more were the first steps into developing the business.

“We know that Minnesotans pride themselves on their schools, sports, and places of employment, and with our business we want to cater to their need to support their associations”
– Kari Severson.

The team also needed the prefect product that could withstand the coldest of all Minnesota winters.

“Choppers…that’s the product”- Jason Ross.

Since then, 16 Degrees, LLC has been rebranded as Sixteen Degrees, LLC focusing on providing hockey fans and others with highest quality leather mittens creating unity and promoting camaraderie among passionate people. In the spring of 2008, Sixteen Degrees produced the first officially licensed University of Minnesota chopper.