Sunday, June 1, 2014

Cruise Collection: Men’s Moccasins With A Twist


Ok, you guys are probably wondering if I only design shoes for women. The answer is no. I had pretty much done everything, from kids to men’s footwear, except orthotic shoes. So for the gents out there, this is something that I think will interest you.


A group of business students from Ateneo approached us to create the footwear line that is part of their school thesis. They wanted to create and sell online an eco-responsible footwear which they branded as Heritage.

The design is totally not original, although they wanted something casual classic men’s wear that would appeal to both young and middle aged market groups. So we’ve given them lots of advice as to the type of materials to use and how to incorporate the use of the tire’s interior as outsole for the moccasins which is the eco-friendly side of their project and still make it a marketable product. Our advise also extended to their packaging and pricing.

Just a background, the use of tire’s interiors is not a new concept at all, even if the hype around the use of it for eco-friendly footwear is recent. Mr. Noel B. Box, the mastermind behind our very own World’s Largest Shoes actually used tire interiors when he was just a teenager for a school project which gained an award and was noted then by the DTI for originality.

May I also add that there is no eco-friendly with footwear production at all! Claim to this note is purely pretentious. One can make a pair of shoes eco-friendly to a very small degree, but that’s it. I say this because we do footwear processing and manufacturing and it is completely component dependent, 85% to 95% of which we import from China and the chemical components of which are not at all eco-friendly. It is sad to see when companies tend to mislead people into believing that this is so through their marketing campaigns.

It was a challenge to work with a big group, although the kids were great. Finally the first prototype was done. I used a luxurious aqua cow suede for the upper, with pigskin lining and insole. The sole is a combination of the interior of a ten wheeler truck and rubber outsole. The group was satisfied with the outcome.


Here, Jerald Sze of  Straighforward Clothing is trying on the aqua green prototype which he loved so much he bought it for his personal use.



Finally, they chose the beige, navy and tan colors. Happily, the group passed their thesis presentation garnering high grades. Sadly though, I don't think that they were able to push through with their online project. 

But Jerald Cze sold the rest of the stocks on his website Straightforward Clothing and has continued to sell shoes on his site.




20 comments:

  1. You really make great shoes. My boyfriend is asking me where he can buy Moccasins because here in our place they only sell it on limited store and the prices range is really high. The design is cool and love the colors!

    Ashley xx
    http://chieislove.blogspot.com

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    1. Thank you, Ashley! I'm also sorry that you'll have to let your boyfriend know we no longer have the moccasins available for sale & nor does Straightforward Clothing since we did this a couple of years ago. I believe they sold this at 1,800 a pair as our advise in pricing to the group. They did choose a classic design so the first thing that I told them is to play with colors so that the can target the younger age group market.

      I will let you now the soonest that we develop new casual styles for men so that your boyfriend can enjoy something that I produced :)

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  2. I want one! I like that you used the interior of a ten wheeler truck wheel for the sole. Eco-friendly and must be really durable. I checked the link to the online store, however, it seems that they no longer carry the product.

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    1. Hey, rainbowjournal! I'm sorry to whet your appetite, I will be posting products that are current & with stock availability. My company is just undergoing an expansion so we will be launching some products soon hopefully before the holiday season.

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  3. It's good to know that you are helping the environment by using the interior of a ten wheeler truck as part of the sole. Keep it up. By the way, the shoes look great.

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    1. Well, only to a very little (really, really small) extent, Sherlane. I wish that we could do more, but as I already said, the process of footwear manufacturing does not give us a lot of opportunity to be eco-friendly as 100%t of the components are not reusable or biodegradable, which is why I stated that claims to this is purely pretentious.

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  4. You design great shoes my dear. I'm going to browse around your site and see which one I'd like to get

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    1. Thank you, KikaysiKat. Please feel free & if it is no trouble at all let me know what you want :)

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  5. I love the style of those shoes and slip-ons are love! I guess it will be best partnered with straightforward's tailored shorts.

    http://doktour.blogspot.com

    Cheers!~

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    1. Yes, this style is all about laid back & casual.... just chillin' :)

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  6. Very glad to see an honest information on eco-friendly products. I have raised my eyebrows in most products that claim to be eco-friendly. I appreciate the effort put in to be eco-friendly, but to go ahead and claim something to be 'more eco-friendly' than it actually is is a form of hypocrisy. I'm also delighted to see designs for men and hopefully there'll be more in future posts.

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    1. Giving out the correct information about shoe processing & manufacturing has always been our advocacy. I dislike giving misleading information just to make a sale. I'd rather that my products speak for itself.

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  7. The shoes look great! Too bad you no longer sell these though. Would have wanted to buy a pair for my hubby.

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    1. Well, the next time I release this kind of moccasin I'll let you know about it :)

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  8. i love shoes too!! i think we can be a good tandem! lol lovin' your style :)

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    1. Hi Alexandria, thanks for appreciating! I am very much open to collaborations :)

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  9. Okay. Since I'm totally sick of wearing these old leather shoes of mine (which by the way, I used to wear since my high school graduation; so I'll the math homework regarding my age on you guys—and of course, I'm kidding anyway), good thing I saw this post of yours. I badly needed one, and seriously, I need to buy one before I turn a quarter.

    I'd love to know though where I can get a chance to buy this one. I have thought of asking for a red colored one but I re-read your blog and founded only three available. But anyway, seems a great pair of kicks.

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    1. Haha.. I can imagine how much you must have love your really old pair of kicks. No, we didn't do this in red but if I redo this collection, I'll let you know... maybe then it will be available in red :)

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  10. Sleek moccasins for men. Love the color and perfect for guys who are stylish.

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