While TOMS shoes might be working on a one-for-one model when it comes to socially conscious footwear, the KLEM Project is empowering people in impoverished communities by helping them making their own shoes. Founded by Lee Jin Young, this design-conscious social enterprise uses sustainable material to provide people in Malawi with footwear.
The DIY project with a social mission involves a kit with foot-forming material and a piece of recycled tire rubber for the sole. In an effort to provide every Malawi native with shoes, the KLEM Project allows people in need to help themselves, rather than relying on foreign aid. This way the shoes can also be individually made to suit the wearer's feet and needs. Once their feet are taken care of, it also allows people in developing areas to focus on other issues.
What's Driving This Trend
- Community-led Shoe Making
- Opportunities for social enterprises to empower impoverished communities by providing DIY shoe making kits, allowing people in need to make their own shoes.
- Sustainable Material Innovation
- Potential for eco-friendly materials, such as recycled tire rubber, to be used in shoe making kits, reducing waste and promoting sustainability.
- Customized Footwear Solutions
- Disruptive innovation opportunities in creating DIY shoe making kits that enable individuals to make shoes tailored to their unique needs and foot measurements.
Who This Affects Most
- Social Enterprises
- Social enterprises can explore opportunities to provide DIY shoe making kits as a sustainable and empowering solution for impoverished communities.
- Material Recycling
- The recycling industry can collaborate with shoe makers to supply sustainable materials such as recycled tire rubber for DIY shoe making kits.
- Customization Technology
- The footwear industry can leverage technology to develop innovative solutions for individuals to create customized shoes using DIY shoe making kits.
