This is a First Look: It's the first time any news outlet or blog has covered this startup. You can read more First Looks here. (We do this a lot.)
We’re officially in spring and, in the tradition of fickle New England weather, we’re still having some snowy surprises here in Boston. On the heels of this week’s storm, let’s take a moment to talk winter footwear. While a number of people depend on their trusty Bean Boots to get them through the snow, many folks will be pleased to learn that a toastier, more fashionable footwear option is coming their way.
Lundí - a startup operating out of the iLab - has developed Italian-made, leather smart-boots that allow you to control the temperature of your feet from your smartphone. The venture, which launches its Kickstarter campaign March 22, has outfitted its pairs of stylish boots with innovative heating technology that will keep your toes dry and warm, no matter how cold it is outside.
Katie Lefkowitz, co-founder of Lundí and MBA candidate at Harvard Business School, first came up with the idea for the smart-boots as she acclimated to the winters in Mass.
“Going back to how I envisioned the idea, it came to me when I had moved from California to Boston for business school. I was in no way prepared for the seasons in terms of clothing and all of that good stuff,” Lefkowitz told me. “I was able to find jackets, gloves and hats that I liked, but I had trouble finding boots that suited me.”
Lefkowitz didn’t care for the common trade-off typically made with regards to winter footwear. She realized she had two options: She could either sport clunky boots that were more practical, or wear fashionable ones that left her feet frigid.
“I thought, ‘There has to be a better way to be dealing with this issue.’ I started talking with my friends, and, based on my conversations, it turned out this was a common problem,” Lefkowitz.
She consulted her father, Sheldon Lefkowitz, who’s a nuclear and mechanical engineer with a Master’s from MIT. The father-daughter duo toyed with the idea of a smart-boot, becoming serious about prototyping it about a year ago.
After much testing, they came up with a final product. From the outside, the boots have a classic leather look. Meanwhile, on the inside, they boast a heating pad throughout the soles, which is covered with a soft material to diffuse the warmth. As a result, you can crank the boots all the way up to 100? and the heat is still gentle enough that it won’t burn your feet or ruin the leather. Additionally, the heating component is built to be waterproof and shock-proof, so the boots are safe to wear regardless of the weather conditions.
Lundí is ready to go, complete with its manufacturer in Italy lined up. By launching their Kickstarter campaign now, they’re planning on getting their first round of customers their smart-boots by next fall - just in time for braving the long winter ahead of them. The pricing for the earliest of customers will start around $249, which is a steal.
Following the crowd-funding campaign, the venture is likely to continue selling its boots through e-commerce, but at a steeper price point. (The manufacturer's suggested retail price on these things is $875.) Lefkowitz said they’d eventually like to sell their products through a major retailer, but that won’t be a priority until 2017.
Images via Katie Lefkowitz.
