Do you know why shoes are eco-friendly? Because when you walk in them, you’re not driving a car.
You might be surprised how many barefoot shoe manufacturers focus on sustainability... mostly all of them. These days, it is cool and trendy, or at least you have to pretend to be overwhelmingly concerned about the planet's future, not to get trampled by enthusiastic environmentalists with braided sandals.
At our company, we are big fans of ecology and sustainability! Seriously, we don’t just say it, we even put it in our company values, so it’s an unquestionable truth! You know the drill - we sort our waste, pack large shipments in used boxes, drink tap water, … but most importantly, we choose brands for our range that have incorporated the principles of ecology and sustainability into their production.
Which ones are they? Click on the word Brands in the upper menu, choose any of them, and you’ll probably find what you are looking for. Don’t worry, because we won’t bother you with going through all of them. Let’s show you some shoe trends and specific examples.
Recycling
Even though they usually have rubber soles, don’t put your shoes in plastic bins. That’s where PET bottles belong. Affenzahn brand uses bottles to make the fabrics. It saves 20% of water consumption, 50% of energy, and 60% of pollutant emissions.
You don’t even have to throw your used barefoot shoes into a textile container. By the way, that’s where they belong if you’ve been leaving them lying by the bin until they end up in a landfill somewhere with 99% of the other shoes.
That is what Vivobarefoot is trying to prevent with their ReVivo project, where customers send in their old Vivbarefoot shoes, which are refurbished, returned to their original shine and functionality, and then put back into circulation. At least in the UK, other countries have to wait a while for a similar service. However, we can already buy Vivobarefoot models made not only from PET bottles but also from corn, cork, cotton, merino wool, rubber, hemp, or parasitic algae.
Upcycling
If you haven’t come across the term upcycling before, it is not about riding your bike uphill. Upcycling is a higher level of recycling, where used goods are made into something new (often entirely different) and of greater utility value.
A good example is the Ahinsa jeans from the Czech manufacturer Ahinsa shoes. You take an old pair of jeans, send them to a Moravian village, they get on the desk of some Edward Scissorhands, and he conjures up a brand new pair of bespoke barefoot shoes.
Veganism
Now a warning for all vegans. Please be aware that shoes are not for eating. But we understand this is a serious ethical issue, and killing animals for the shoe business is not right in terms of respect for nature and all living beings.
This is why the company Ahinsa shoes was founded in the first place, with „Ahinsa“ representing the Sanskrit principle of non-violence. No wonder all their shoes are 100% vegan and ethical for further spreading the idea that an animal is a friend, not a food!
Similarly, a vegan shoe line, such as sandals and sneakers, can be found in the range of the German manufacturer bLIFESTYLE:
Sustainability
It's an idea if there is any future for our children and us with our current lifestyles. Whether we will all suffocate on carbon dioxide, drown in rising sea levels, or die in another miserable way when nature decides to get rid of us before we get rid of her.
KEEN Footwear is trying to detoxify the planet by entirely moving away from chemicals and other harmful substances in production. They try to financially and materially help areas affected by natural disasters, at the same time, not only through grants, they support the inclusion of representatives of various minorities in the work process, as well as the involvement of volunteers.
The importance of comprehensive sustainability is also recognized, for example, in bLIFESTYLE. The company has its shoes manufactured by a family-owned company in Portugal, which provides equal working conditions and new opportunities in the local region. In Sindelfinden, Germany, bLIFESTYLE has headquarters equipped with its photovoltaic system and heated by pellets. They guarantee decent wages for their employees and send us shredded boxes, so we don’t waste cardboard on new ones.
Slow fashion
Please note that the term slow fashion does not mean that a package of shoes will take three months to arrive. On the contrary! We manage fast delivery, so feel free to order.
You might receive some slow-fashion shoes = made with the whole ecosystem in mind, but most importantly, with quality materials, so they don’t fall apart in the first season, and you don’t have to order new ones over and over again.
Such shoes are offered, for example, by the brand Be Lenka. They support local production in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, and they place a high emphasis on the quality of raw materials and crafts so that the shoes bring joy for a long time. They reduce the amount of waste produced and their carbon footprint. The company is involved in various green projects.
You can also take a step towards sustainability. Just stop buying cheap shoes every season (possibly made by children or slaves, under undignified conditions and with a negative impact on the environment) and choose quality barefoot shoes instead.
We have thousands of such barefoot shoes in stock for ladies, gentlemen, or children. And when your little ones outgrow them, save them for the next child or send them on to someone else, for example, through secondhand shops with children’s goods or shoes.
At the same time, make sure you take proper care of your shoes, as this will multiply their lifespan. You also can take your car to the service regularly to keep it running as long as possible! For example, Saltic guarantees shoe repair service, including sole replacement.
When you really need new shoes, don’t forget to buy them from us! Of course, if you care about the sustainable development of e-shop, that cares about you and the planet. We are always happy to advise you on which shoes to choose, either online or in person. And at the same time, we can talk about ecology and sustainability.
And one more thing you can do right now. Try to shop, so you don’t have to send the shoes back to us! While it’s a great convenience from a customer’s perspective to have multiple shoes sent to you to try on and then send most of them back to us, the additional shipping of shoes not only costs money and time, but it’s also bad for the environment! Thanks so much if you can help us improve it!