Our Story
It all began on our second deployment in the Middle East when we were unable to run as much as we wanted in preparation for upcoming ultramarathons due to the extreme heat and lack of space. We needed to find an alternative to start strengthening our feet and ankles for the upcoming abuse they would inevitably endure during these long ultramarathon treks. That’s when we started to look into the footwear we were wearing on a daily basis. When we were out of our boots and running shoes, we relied on a popular rigid cork insoled sandal with high arch support. We found these sandals acted as more of a cast for our feet, preventing natural foot movement. Anyone who has ever broken a bone knows that when you put that limb into a cast it atrophies over time causing it to become weak and injury prone. This is when the idea was born: turn our sandals into a tool to strengthen our feet rather than weaken them.
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I started making sandals out of the upstairs room in my house for my buddies, really trying to dial in the design and gaining valuable honest feedback from them. I have spent most of my time off tweaking the design to try to make it as perfect as possible. More and more people started to become interested in purchasing a pair for themselves. I mainly sold sandals to people in my local area and only recently I have moved from our local market into the online space and even internationally.
The sandal production is pretty much a one man show with the help of some of my buddies and my girlfriend for sizing and shipping help. I am in the U.S. Navy currently stationed in Virginia where all of the sandal production happens during my free time. I am often required to travel for training which can extend lead times for the sandal production and deployments will cause me to shut down the shop for months at a time. Since the production is mainly just myself hand making the sandals from start to finish, I thank you for being patient with me. I take my time on each and every pair of sandals and don’t cut corners to increase production. I work very hard during my time off to make each pair of sandals exactly how the customer wants. I also love to work directly with customers if you need custom sizes or even inquire about using different leathers. I value feedback from all of you as I continually strive to perfect these sandals and make the best product I possibly can. Thank you for being patient with us and I truly thank you for supporting our small business!
- Nate