Social Responsibility

Handmade in India
Inspired by the 5 lakes surrounding us and the beautiful pre-Alpine landscape, we have been developing our SOLE RUNNER® barefoot shoes in beautiful Bavaria since 2010.

Since 2015, we have been producing in a family-run shoe factory near Chennai, India. Our shoes are produced fairly and sustainably there.

The employees earn above the minimum wage and there are on-site facilities such as a kindergarten, break rooms and prayer rooms.

The company meets all the requirements of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and has the Gold Standard of the Working Leather Group.

The in-house tannery has a modern wastewater treatment plant, 50% of the electricity is produced in-house (as of 2024) and no more fossil fuels are used.

Since 2019, we have been working with another small family business, where we currently have the Neso and Neso Chap sandals and toe separators produced.

Our local shoe technician is in daily contact with us. We ourselves are also on site at regular intervals.

We are proud to produce high-quality, sustainable barefoot shoes that live up to our values and standards.

Our handmade SOLE RUNNER® barefoot shoes allow you to walk naturally and without strain on your joints.

With every purchase of a SOLE RUNNER® product you secure jobs at home and abroad.

Our fair production guarantees appropriate wages above the minimum wage.

Our aim is to build long-term, partnership-based relationships with our producers.

All social standards of the International Labour Organisation are adhered to in the factories.

There is no unknown origin with us.

We source our fabrics from German producers in India, our leather suppliers are audited by the Leather Working Group. Our rubber outsoles came from Slovenia until 2020 and since 2020 we have a local family business that produces our soles.

We source insoles, laces, eyelets and other shoe accessories from local Indian family businesses.

Our own SOLE RUNNER® waterproofing and care spray is sustainably produced in Germany.

Sustainability is a top priority for us.

We have been working largely paperless in our HQ in Diessen since 2017 and have reduced our consumption of paper and printer cartridges by over 80%.

Since 2019, we have invested in moulds for high-quality cardboard strips, which we use as filling material.

Our shoe boxes are folded instead of glued or stapled, which saves glue and protects the environment.

Of course participate in the dual system.

Our producer has invested 1 million dollars in a sewage treatment plant.

Over 90% of the water used is purified and reused. The unused water is used to irrigate the factory's own vegetable garden.

Briquettes produced in the tannery from agricultural waste, so-called agro waste briquettes, are used to heat the boilers for leather production.
This means that no fossil fuels are used.

Our partners must guarantee safe workplaces and compliance with the international guidelines of the Code of Conduct.
These guidelines serve to ensure global labour and social standards with the aim of guaranteeing labour rights and decent work for people worldwide.
They were drawn up jointly with the International Labour Organization (ILO), which is part of the UN.

In addition, the shoe manufactory is certified by Bureau Veritas, one of the world's leading companies for testing and certification, with the Social Accountability SA 8000:2014 certificate.

(Image excerpt from the SA 8000 certificate)

We ourselves, as well as our producer, see it as our duty to pay fair wages and salaries. Our fair production therefore focusses on wages above the minimum wage.

Our employees share in the success of the company, we pay travelling allowances and offer a pleasant working environment

Sustainable Production and Transparency

Sustainability in Online Trade