About

Flote: sophistication and function come together in a collection of bags and accessories that offer a refined, hands-free option to carry essentials. Modern designs, executed in the finest fabrics and hardware, complement your venturesome lifestyle.  Flote bags are hand crafted by top artisans in USA workshops with meticulous attention to the integrity of each item, ensuring quality, long-lasting products.

On a country road or in a city scene the Flote collection is designed to go the distance.

Jill Mara, founder and CEO of Flote, first entered the world of fashion as a women’s apparel buyer for a nationwide department store. Her path took her from buyer to starting and becoming partner in a top selling, multi million dollar apparel company, developing and selling branded and private label collections worldwide, to department stores, specialty boutiques, television shopping networks, catalogs and on line. 

Her love of adventure, travel and art inspired Jill to create Flote, an innovative collection of bags and accessories, where sophistication and function come together to offer a refined option to carry essentials.  Modern designs executed in the finest fabrics and hardware complement one’s venturesome lifestyle.  Flote items are hand crafted by top artisans in USA workshops with meticulous attention to the integrity of each item, ensuring quality, long lasting, heirloom products. 

Jill has participated in fashion panels with other esteemed members of the fashion industry.  She is also a freelance consultant for small business owners and has been a volunteer mentor for Count Me In/ Make Mine a Million $ Business, a program with American Express that provides money, mentoring, marketing and technology tools that help women entrepreneurs grow their businesses.

An accomplished athlete, Jill has successfully run the New York City Marathon, bicycled thru the Canadian Rockies, climbed to the summit of Mount Olympus in Greece, climbed glaciers on New Zealand’s south island and has been enjoying her advanced scuba diving certification by diving all around the world.  Since childhood Jill has had quite an affinity to the arts and is a member of many museums.  She has also progressed to be an exceptional potter- just ask her Mother.