Products
We design our products to last. We believe that it is better to build a solid product that performs long-term than it is to build throw away products that need to be replaced every few months. Normally we like to say our footbeds, for example, will last for one year. Dean Karnazes ran on his SOLE Signature Edition DK's during his Endurance50 in 2006 (50 marathons in 50 states in 50 consecutive days). He used 4 pairs of shoes and only 1 pair of footbeds.
This durability is also important because, unfortunately, our products themselves cannot be recycled or bio-degrade (yet). This is due in part to their construction, with several different materials being combined to create the finished product. Another reason is that performance is number one for us and we can not get the same performance out of recycled, recyclable, or degradable materials yet. Also, infrastructure and facilities to recycle these materials do not exist in most communities.
These are initiatives we are working on currently- adding recycled content, adding natural, sustainable content (cork, bamboo, etc.), and trying to find recyclable and degradable materials that will perform up to our standards.
No PVC. Never had it, never will. None of our component materials can be found in the California Proposition 65 list of chemicals that can cause cancer or reproductive toxicity. None can be found in the American Apparel and Footwear Association list of restricted chemicals.
