soleRebels is an amazing footwear company founded in 2004 by company founder and managing director Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu in her community of Zenabwork, Ethiopia!
The firm began as an idea: that the creation of shoes could be a platform for inspiration hope. By crafting xtraCOOL footwear that gave the person wearing them immense comfort and joy, soleRebels create great employment opportunities RIGHT INSIDE THEIR OWN COMMUNITY and giving the often ignored a chance to engage in creative endeavors.From their inception, they proudly employed and trained the highly marginalized or those thought unemployable. Together soleRebels set out to re-imagine the traditional Ethiopian “selate” and “barabasso” shoes (recycled car tire sole shoe pictured to the right) in dynamic + vibrant new fashions.
soleRebels aimed to create something that was authentically local but had a truly universal flavor to it and for the past few years we have that and more. All the while, firm never loses its focus on crafting their wares from the most eco-sensible materials available: a combination of recycled, organic and bio-based materials. Then, they make shoes in the most energy efficient manner possible – with Ethiopian talented hands.
Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu, Founder and CEO of soleRebels
Raised in an Ethiopian village, Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu noticed, “We had lots of artisan talent, but no job opportunities.” So she created soleRebels, a shoe company that pays fairly and uses local materials such as hand-spun cotton and recycled tires. Additionally, she said, “We don’t want to make a pity product; we want people to buy our shoes because they look good,” Alemu says”
SOLEREBELS RETAIL STORES
ETHIOPIA
TAIWAN STORE #1 – KAOSHIUNG
TAIWAN STORE #2 – TAICHUNG
TAIWAN STORE #3 – PINGTUNG CITY
AUSTRIA
TAIWAN STORE #4 – KAOHSIUNG
TAIWAN STORE #5 – TAICHUNG
SINGAPORE
TAIWAN STORE #7
Products
The firm has over 15 different product categories between men, women and kids footwear. One very importart category that highlights soleRebels, is B*KND VEGAN. It’s the name they give to all soleRebels pieces that are created and crafted for vegans, veggies and everyone who cares deeply about what they wear and who doesn’t want any animal related products making up their footwear.
B*knd are styled and crafted with all the great stuff that soleRebels products are known for like their sensuous artisan-spun organic cottons, pure Abyssinian jutes, vintage artisan loomed fabrics, their famed recycled tire soles, and a whole bunch more interesting things. And as with all soleRebels, the firm will give everyone the low-down on what is inside each pair of b*knd in order to appreciate each pair even more.
References:
1) www.ceo.com
2) http://www.fastcompany.com/
3)Official Facebook Page of SoleRebels
Consumer Value Creation 