When customers walk inside the new Aksels retail outlet in downtown Steamboat Springs, they will be greeted by uniquely designed, Colorado-influenced hats, socks, T-shirts and accessories.

“We offer products that are more unique and artistically thought about and designed Colorado products,” manager Tim O’Connor said. “We are trying to be a little bit different than every other Colorado store that’s out there. … We make all sorts of different products that are going to be Colorado influenced. We offer really cool and really thought-out Colorado and Steamboat gear.”

Denver-based Aksels (pronounced Axels) was founded in 2007 and has a warehouse in Denver, along with stores in the Cherry Creek Mall, Park Meadows Mall, Denver International Airport, Castle Rock, Salida and now Steamboat.

The Steamboat store, which opened in mid-December, is located in the lower level of the Old Town Square Building at 635 Lincoln Ave.

“Our main focus is like hats and socks,” O’Connor said. “That’s where the brand really started.”

O’Connor said the products are made from high-quality materials, and most of the T-shirts and hoodies are a cotton blend that offer a comfortable fit while remaining durable. He says all of the items are unique, with a design that presents the state and the town with edgy, up-to-date choices.

“We use high-quality materials in all of our apparel,” O’Connor said. “All of the Steamboat Aksels designs will be one-of-a-kind, so you will not be able to find it anywhere else.”

He said the products are created by Aksels design team, which has created shirts, hoodies, hats and socks that are as unique as the towns they are trying to reflect.

Like the shirts, the socks are also crafted from top quality materials and offer customers a cotton, nylon and spandex blend with a reinforced heel and toe, and seamless toe closure. While most of the items in the store are Colorado themed, the sock lineup includes other cities and states, and the stores collections include animals, gnome life, holiday treats, mountains, skylines and sports.

In addition to T-shirts and socks, customers will also find a large selection of baseball caps in a number of different styles, including snapback and Flexfit. There are curved bill, flat bill, low profile, camper hats, structured camper, full flex, foam and dad styles available. The store also offers beanies and bucket hats. All of the graphic designs are produced by Aksels at the company’s Denver warehouse, and the embroidery on the hats is also done in house.

The store also offers a selection of women’s leggings, flip-flops made out of recycled bike tires, Colorado inspired dog leashes and a large selection of Colorado-inspired stickers.

“We are trying to just expand the brand throughout Colorado,” O’Connor said. “It’s a Colorado-based brand, and we kind of pride ourselves on being Colorado locals from Denver.”

The store is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

John F. Russell is the business reporter at the Steamboat Pilot & Today. To reach him, call 970-871-4209, email jrussell@SteamboatPilot.com or follow him on Twitter @Framp1966.