sportstyle

• PRODUCTS + TRENDS sportstyle • sportstylemag.com R EEF's John Eades is a sandal geek. His REEF career first began 18 years ago. He then departed in 2009 to co-launch the Vere Sandal Company that produced sustainable sandals in its own domestic factory. Eight years later, he was recruited to lead the footwear product development team for Roxy. He's now back at REEF as the brand's senior director of product. sportstyle caught up with the REEF exec to discuss the 37-year- old brand, the overall sandal market and his thoughts on sustainability. Here are some excerpts from our conversation with Eades. "We have seen a shift to casual [during the past year] and that's played into what our strengths are at REEF. Consumers are looking for casual style and to be comfortable and as a result, we've had a record year. There are articles out there saying that people want to dress up again but we've also seen people get used to comfort and get used to being at home. When we focus on fit, quality and comfort, it's worked out well for us." "We are sandal experts here, and that has given us a leg up. People do recognize us as experts in the category." "Sandals are only three points of contact. So simple. But, if you mess them up, its messes the whole thing up. There is no adding more padding to make it fit better. There is no adjusting the footbed at the last minute. It has to be right to be done." "REEF has had a closed toe program for a long time. We were heavily involved in the mid '90s… Closed toe has always been a bit of a challenge for us since we're so well known for open toe, but we're having a bit more success than we've had in the past, and we are seeing some momentum there. That said, everything is going to come back to comfort for us. It's our number one story. It's what we're known for and continue to focus on." "Age isn't something we focus on too much. We're looking at more of a needs-based strategy. You could be 55, 35 or 15 and your needs could be the same." "In 2005-06, we debuted REEF Redemption, putting together some strategies. Being solar-powered. No plastic in the building. All of the carpet is recycled. When we launched REEF Redemption, we adopted the mantra, 'What we can when we can.' We know there is no magic bullet. But we know it's important for us to find and implement things on a broader scale where they can be impactful. We carry that over to the product side as well… We're trying to implement meaningful changes. A couple of examples — We've been PVC-free since 2006 and we're among the first to go there with all of our straps. Also, we've changed all the webbing in our toe posts to a recycled material… We're experimenting with different foams, using sugar cane foams in some sandals."— Bob McGee Catching Some Waves with REEF's John Eades SOCKS WITH ® 4 AC ™ ACTIVE COMFORT ™ PERFORMANCE SOCKS 844-413-5457 OS1st.com

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