FiveFingers are made in China but the business operations are headquartered in Concord, Mass.
When you think of BostInnovation, “footwear” is probably not the first thing that comes to mind, but perhaps one of the most interesting and innovative local companies in the area is Vibram FiveFingers, located in Concord, Mass. (You should know by now that BostInno is all about innovative local companies.)
The name Vibram (pronounced Veeb-Rum) and the little gold logo on the FiveFingers might seem familiar, because they have a strong history of innovating for feet. The Italian brand is credited with inventing the rubber sole way back in the 1930s.
Fast-forward to the year 2000, and Vibram’s U.S. headquarters in Concord was making soles for brands like Burton snowboard boots and Shimano cycling shoes. Their latest cutting-edge creation is one that’s really raising eyebrows — We think it might even end up being bigger than the rubber sole.
“We created FiveFingers as a glove for your feet,” says Tony Post, CEO of Vibram USA
Wait a minute. Why do I need foot gloves?
“One of the thoughts that we had was that, although there are plenty of times when you need shoes and boots, if you’re always in shoes and boots, the muscles in your feet begin to atrophy. You lose strength. You lose range of motion. You lose neural activity that can be important to balance and agility,” says Post. “So our idea was if you could be close to being barefoot, but with a small amount of protection and grip, then there might be a lot of occasions where that might be something cool to have.”
Some FiveFingers shoes are made for cold, wet conditions.
The initial product was developed by an industrial designer in Italy, and Vibram USA collaborated with their Italian colleagues to develop it, but the sales and distribution of this product — which now includes multiple lines for everything from chilling out and driving to running in cold, wet conditions — is all done right here in the Bay State. (Post also notes that all of their marketing is social media based.)
Today, FiveFingers shoes are growing in popularity at a seemingly exponential rate.
“Our business has grown so rapidly; it’s more than tripled each of the last few years,” says Post, who notes that the Concord staff has doubled to 20 people in the last year and will likely add another 10 before August of this year.
Part of that explosive growth has to do with recently released third-party research, some of which was done at Harvard University, that suggests barefoot (or in the case of FiveFingers, near-barefoot) running may be much better for humans than running in sneakers. The problem, it seems, is that sneakers force us to land on our heels even though our bodies evolved anatomically land and push off with our forefoot. Some scientists now believe running in sneakers may actually contribute to the hip, knee and ankle injuries runners often suffer from.
“The sole [on FiveFingers] is so thin and so minimal that you can’t heel-strike,” Post explains. “When you do that, it changes your bio-mechanics. It changes your posture, and you’re able to run in a way that puts far less stress on your knees, your hips, and your lower back. It’s less impact.”
The product launched at the 2006 Boston Marathon, but it seems FiveFingers can’t keep up with demand, part of which is due to the fact that many enthusiasts of CrossFit, a sort of hybrid lifting-and-cardio workout style, prefer these shoes while exercising. (CrossFit seems to be gaining popularity locally as well, and a gym dedicated to the activity recently sprung up in the Fenway area.)
Post says there’s a plan for meeting this incredible demand.
“For those people who are FiveFingers fans, we added two factories in December and we just added two more in the last two weeks,” he says. “We’re working to increase production so we can begin to satisfy demand. It’s a challenge — it’s a problem — but I guess if you have a problem it’s a good one to have.”
It sounds like FiveFingers is a pretty well-heeled company and will continue to be if the demand keeps growing. You might want toe get a pair and join the movement today.
You can buy these awesome shoes online at the Vibram site, but you might want to get fitted for them at a store, since they aren’t sized like traditional shoes. Locally, you can find Vibram FiveFingers at City Sports. They take a little getting used to, and Vibram recommends ramping up to long runs in them.
What do you think? Do you use Vibram FiveFingers? How do you like them? Let us know in the comments section.
Tags: Company Profiles, Edu, Vibram
