Dave and I have been working the past few months diligently on getting out some new eco-friendly styles that he just blogged about and starting our first direct retail outlet. We opened our first mall cart in “The Parks At Arlington” mall in Dallas, TX just yesterday. Needless to say we are super excited.

Why Dallas you may ask, we just like sunshine in everything we do. Having our own direct retail presence is a great way to connect with our customers and understanding firsthand what they like and don’t about our product’s and initiatives. If you are ever in Dallas area, please take some time to stop by and say hello.  Thanks for your continued support.

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 I always wanted to be a socially responsible entrepreneur and giving back to the community was a big part of it. That was the theme that got Dave and I together in this venture. The journey in this direction has opened a whole new perspective for us on conscious capitalism and environmental responsibility.  We can’t help but notice and try emulating other businesses and initiatives in this direction. Here are links to some earlier blogs from Dave on some of the businesses we admire

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As Dave mentioned in the previous blog our quest for natural materials continues not only in India but from else where in the world. In parallel we are also working on our next designs that can use the latest technology available. We had success with laser engraving on the Men's Aiman style flip-flop and are now looking to utilize laser engraving in new ways. 

Laser engraving is the practice of using lasers to engrave or mark an object, in this case our insoles. The technique can be very technical and complex, and uses a computer system to drive the movements of the laser head.  In spite of this complex process, very precise and clean engravings can be achieved.

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Dave and I went to visit the all girls school in Purchuru, to learn first hand how the school operates and what initiatives will make the most sense for the school.  It was quite an amazing experience. All the children seem so bright and happy to receive an education, and the teachers are so very proud of the school and their students.  The girls come from poor families who normally cannot afford to pay for their children education.

The school has been running  on donations and noble intentions for the last 24 years. The school is is practically free for the students, they only collect a paltry 25 cents for the whole year from each student.  Few donors over the years have been sponsoring teachers fees, children's uniforms, children's books and other necessities for the school. One such distinguished gentleman is Mr.Venkateswarlu (Lu) in this photo with Dave and I.

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Dave is on his way back to US. No one would believe that it was his first time to India. He braved the heat, spices, and all the complexities of travel in India with great ease and as any local would do.  Kids just loved him where ever we went and some even thought he was Ricky Ponting the pro cricketer from Australia (although Dave isn't so sure about that after looking him up...). Here is a picture of Dave with the kids from Takkar baba colony in Kurla Mumbai. 

We took autos and rickshaws where ever we could as that is the best mode of transport to the places that we wanted to go. Here are other pictures of him (and I) during his trip from checking out materials in the streets of Delhi to visiting the all girls school at Purchuru to understand the needs of the children there.  We did lots of work while he was here and in the process had tons of fun too. If you talk to him you should definitely ask him about the spice challenge he volunteered for.

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We have our first batch of products shipped from India. We choose to airfreight them albeit it is much more expensive to do this way to save time. Needless to say we are very excited.  Also shipped with our products are silk packaging bags and promotional tags for our initiatives. 

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Dave and I have been contemplating about what kind of initiatives we should be selecting that would be most impactful, can be administered directly by us and can show concrete results to customers and others donating money to our initiatives. In this process I met people from www.aasai.org.    

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We don't just make any flip-flop at Common Soles. We make good ones. Flip-flops that will hold up to the daily abuse you expect all your footwear to withstand. Harsh abuses such as walking the dog, making homemade iced-tea, and slipping on to air out the feet apres mountain biking. Yes, we realize these are not the most extreme of conditions for footwear, but they may be your reality - they certainly are ours....

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