We get lots of questions on how we maintain and ensure that our footwear factory overseas is providing a quality work environment for all employees. It’s a great question and we’ve written about such related practices previously here in the Sole Blog. But when trolling through some of these earlier posts I realized that we have not specifically laid out our criteria, findings, and notes in one clear and concise post. So here it is!

- Worker pay. The workers at Sarada Indistries, the factory we employ in Vijayawada, India, pays a fair wage to all workers well above the country base line for pay in this industry which I have to tell you is scary low. Unfortunately we do not have direct control over this as we do not own the factory. We have spent significant time there though, and in speaking with workers directly have learned that they are paid well and often it is the best paying job in the area for them!

- Worker conditions. After having spent significant time on the factory floor Rao and I can comfortably describe the factory as: Highly Functional. Much like you would expect a Toyota auto factory except WAY smaller and less high-tech. Everything and everybody has a specific purpose and process they follow. Defining functional means that adequate lighting and safety precautions are in place, each worker has a comfortable space to work within, a breeze and fresh air comes through large open windows, and ceiling fans provide a nice cooling effect in the warm South Indian climate. Hazardous materials are not used in the production of Common Soles footwear, in fact, our products are so simple that most materials and tools used to assemble them can be found in the typical homeowner's garage throughout the US.

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We are over 50% of the way to completing this initiative which rebuilds the small library and laboratory at the all-girls school in Purchuru, India. This rural school provides education to girls in the region who otherwise would not be able to go to school. Many graduates end up being the first in their family to go to university and/or get jobs in the city.

We are so close to funding this initiative via the sale of the Common Soles Natya and Aiman flip-flops. Help us hit that goal by picking up a pair for yourself or as a gift today! Think Mothers Day, Fathers Day, Graduation present, Wedding party gifts, whatever!

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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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Rao and Hema just got back from a trip to Goa where they put a few of our latest designs to the test! Goa is located on the west coast of India in a region known as Konkan.  Known for its beautiful beaches and comfortable climate, Goa pulls visitors from all over the world as a resort destination. Perfect for testing out Common Soles flip-flops!

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2010 is already shaping up to be a good year for us! Earlier this month we realized the successful completion of our first initiative. The goal was to generate funding to purchase new school books and supplies for the children of the workers in the factory that make Common Soles flip-flops in Vijayawada, India. Check out the details and photos from this event on our initiatives page.

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Rao is back in India working on product and initiatives. We hope to have our first initiative fully funded in the next few weeks while he’s over there so we can wrap it up and get the kids new books!  He’s busy working with the folks over there in assembling that whole process and I hope having some fun while doing so!

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We spotted this while in Delhi. I don’t think anything else needs to be said other than that I want one!
-Dave

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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I am enroute to India to meet up with Rao who has been hard at work over there on new product and initiaitves for Common Soles.  As a result we won't be posting any new blog entries until we return the week of Oct 11th. (I know, you'll miss us...)

The purpose of the trip is to get the next few styles and initiaitves dialed in. A women's flip-flop similar to the picture here, and a men's flop!  Each flop will be sold to generate funding to support an initiaitve relevant to the workers that made the flops. Most likely these initiatives will be education related.  The plan is to have these new styles available later this fall!  Wish us luck and please bear with us these next two weeks as Lisa is running the show here in the US by herself until Oct 11th.

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Currently, Rao is traveling India working on product and initiatives for Common Soles. I join him on Sept 30th!  Here is a picture of Rao exploring some of the footwear available for sale in the streetside shops of Bangalore (Bengaluru). He's found everything from hand-made leather sandals to ornate slippers. Keeping his eyes open for any recylced materials as well as innovative construction and manufacturing techniques. Go Rao Go!

-Dave

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We are making great progress with raising the necessary funds for our Vijayawada school book initiative.  25% to goal thus far! Thank you to all who are supporting this initiative by purchasing a pair of the Saahi Flip-flops.  The sooner we reach our goal, the faster the children get their new books.

We're looking at additional initiaitves with our friends in Vijayawada, India as well as other locations in India.  Outside of India we are searching for and evaluating potential factories and footwear manufacturing communities in such places as Eastern Europe, Africa, South America, and even North America.

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As stated all over our website we are selling the Saahi Flip-Flop to generate funding for school books.  Books that will go to the children of the factory workers who made the flip-flops.  In order to convey our progress in generating funds we've posted a meter on our Initiatives page which we will update periodically for our fund generating progress.

Once we hit our goal of collecting 100% of the funds to purchase the books, we will have our field staff in Vijayawada purchase the books and deliver them to the children.  We'll get photos of that when it happens to share online!

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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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Over the past few days Rao and I have had several conversations with folks on the $1 we give per pair sold.  Some think it's great, others wonder why it's only $1.  Here's the detail on the $1 we give and why it's actually more than just $1.

The $1 (or 4% of retail price, not profit) we give is fully allocated to the initiative being funded by the Saahi flip-flop, which in this case is purchasing school books for children in India.  Common Soles covers all the additional costs in administering this support.  Those costs consist of paying for the people in India to actually administer the initiative.  Administering it means:

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The photo we currently have posted on our home page was taken at one of the schools we are helping to fund via the sale of our flip flops.  The school is The Amanchi Narasimham & Venkata Subbamma Girls High School, located in Paruchuru, Prakasam District in Andhra Pradesh, India (see map below).   

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We are probably one of the smallest footwear organizations in existence right now.  Two employees in the US, and some dedicated folks overseas.  Of course we do have the help of our significant others (thank you very much!), friends, and family.  Being small is good though - we are incredibly nimble and it's very easy for Rao and I to communicate with one another. 

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We do!  We are refining a few models so we can launch later this summer.  A few different woman's styles that are being handmade by our folks in India.  These flip flops will kick off our first initiative which will be to help fund education for the workers children.  (I discuss this in previous posts for those of you who are following our journey.)

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