The trick to lowering your carbon footprint might just be putting some pineapples on your feet.
That's the idea behind Scoots Footwear, a new Chicago startup that's creating shoes made from pineapple leaves, corn and cork. The startup, led by a group of MBA students at Northwestern's Kellogg school, says its shoes are made from 95% organic, natural materials and designed for earth-conscious consumers.
"Billions of pairs of shoes are thrown away every year, and they take 50 to 500 years to break down," founder David Costello said. "I thought that there had to be a better way to do that."
Costello set out 15 months ago to create a leather-alternative shoe brand that lets people express themselves while making an impact on the world. After researching different materials and taking classes at the Chicago School of Shoemaking, Costello started putting together some early prototypes.
He eventually partnered with a UK company to make the top part of the shoe, which is made from pineapple leaves and corn. The bottom section of the shoe is made from cork, similar to a Birkenstock. The shoes are manufactured in a plant in Portugal, where Costello spent a month earlier this year working with the staff on the factory floor to perfect the design.
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Scoots is officially launching on Kickstarter on June 4. The startup plans to fully launch in the first quarter of 2020 and its shoes will retail for $95.
While just 5% of Scoots's shoes are made from synthetic materials, like its rubber sole, nylon thread, and latex that's mixed with cork to create the footbed, Costello said he plans to eventually launch a version that uses zero synthetic or animal materials and is fully compostable.
Costello said the startup is currently performing durability tests on the shoe, but he expects Scoots to last as long as your typical shoe. The company uses a protective coating on top to protect from snow, rain and sun damage.
Scoots isn't the first clothing company to take a stab at plant-based footwear. Hugo Boss also designed a shoe made from pineapple leaves, and Reebok made a corn and cotton-based shoe that consists of 75% USDA-certified biological materials. But Costello said no other shoe company is using the same combination of materials that Scoots is using.
"The material itself is quite innovative," he said. "When you look at it, you can immediately tell that it's not leather, but it's something new and interesting."
Scoots also isn't the first Chicago-based footwear upstart. BucketFeet, founded in 2011, was acquired by Threadless after raising more than $28 million in funding.
Costello said Scoots is aiming to raise a round of funding this summer. It has so far secured $65,000 in grants from Northwestern to help get production off the ground.
