Unfortunately, without country of origin labeling on their own site or on Amazons, its practically impossible to tell where a particular shoe is made. Later in the chat she said I actually forgot to mention we have quite a few styles made in India. Having worn the Vegas, a plain leather silhouette similar to Common Projects Achilles and many other safe sneaker choices, I can report that the technology does indeed work. Puma is another company that is responding to tariffs from the US on China by shifting footwear and apparel manufacturing out of China and to countries like Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Cambodia. The shoe has only been re-released once since it debuted in February, leaving out the very people who could use it most. So, thanks for the honest review including the lack of excellent arch support. Hints for avoiding made in China: Buy anything from their Heritage line and be assured youre getting the best quality shoe available. So right now, when I see made in Vietnam, I celebrate it mainly because they offer SOME alternative to Chinas monopolization. Most recently its been sold to a private equity group called Yellow Wood Partners, who established a new company called Scholls Wellness Company to run the brand. Each of Kiziks six silhouettes currently on the market do feature laces, although they arent necessary for use besides whenever they may come untied. the most popular clothing and footwear brands, as measured by YouGov polls, popular womens boots, also made in India, their entire line of American Heritage shoes and boots, their Moab 2 Hiking Shoes made in Vietnam, https://www.altberg.co.uk/stockists/altberg-factory-shop, https://ctwatchdog.com/business/ecco-shoes-warning-almost-new-expensive-shoes-disintegrate, Power Banks and Phone Cables Not Made in China. If these work as advertised Id say they should also be marketed as a medical device. 2021 has seen sales grow 10-fold compared to the year prior, and the brand is preparing to launch its first kids' shoes in the coming months. and theyre all right. I have terrible lymphadema and my feet swell horribly. Counterfeiters are making products that are indistinguishable from the real thing. Input 2022 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. I took a random sample of 5 of their highest rated and most popular products on Amazon. Anyone that has cared for an elderly person knows the struggles are real getting them up and ready for the day. Getting up and down to tie my shoes can be difficult. Most of these companies have very few meaningful ties with their original countries anymore. Heres another one from Maine, Looking at my wifes Nike shoes should be enough to make you never want to slip them on again. Online, Im talking about the likes of ebay, Poshmark, Etsy, etc Certainly you have to do your research and ask the sellers for as many specifics as you can think of about sale items, before you commit to buy. Remember that quality is not necessarily the issue here, but how much of your purchase goes to fund an oppressive government. As a blue-collar guy I also recommend Thorogood work boots. The New Balance shoes are fantastic, I have had several pairs, both the Made in USA and Made in UK versions. I looked at Kiziks for 4 months, not needing tennis shoes or wanting to spend the money. Ask your local cobbler (yes, they still exist although its usually under signs that say shoe repair) or try searching for resole on the internet. When I contacted their chat agent to ask where their shoes were made, they said most are either made in China or Vietnam but they didnt give me a percentage. Wearing the shoes, you would have no idea that they were anything special. Ill give it to KIZIK, their shoes could have been much uglier. It was originally started in 1966 in Anaheim, California as a skateboarding brand, and continues to be headquartered in Costa Mesa. It went right in and fit perfectly. Karen Kane is mostly made in USA but pricey . And appropriate to its name, New Balance maintains that balanceon the one hand in order to survive and compete it does need to outsource a certain amount of manufacturing, but on the other hand it continues to maintain a meaningful manufacturing base in its home country and its diversifying its supply chain. Really trying to avoid footwear and clothing made in China, dont want to feed CCP and their inhumane treatment of Uyghurs. But remember, this report card is not about whether a company does business in China at all; its about how the extent to which a company has gone all in to China manufacturing and the extent to which the company sells out its own principles and its own country to ingratiate itself to the China market (through the CCP). If you do wear socks (or at least open to wearing some socks check out BOMBAS and our Bombas Review), then Kiziks could be the right sneaker brand for you. When I look at their most popular product on Amazon, the Unisex Classic Clog, the country of origin information is missing from the product description (of course). I have a pair and Im obsessed! I bought my husband a pair for Christmas. We have a lofty goal of in the next 10 years, we want a billion people to be hands-free, Brown says. Ill give them a C but itll be clearly up to you, the consumer, to force them to improve, as theyre not going to do it on their own. Similar to Red Wing Shoes, they also maintain a clothing line called Heritage that is completely made in the USA. I hope in a year I can upgrade them from a C+ to an B or even an A, but time will tell. Thats a start. Well update it! But they just arent allowed to market to the US. Since gaining weight around the stomach area, it has been challenging to bend forward enough to put any shoes on other than slip-ons. Prices for all of Kiziks lineup of shoes for men and women are between $100 and $130, and Brown says the company is looking into a more cost-effective material as an alternative to titanium in order to bring down its prices further. You could always wear those ankle no-show socks, ya know? Not only were we free from tying laces, but the shoes were incredibly comfortable! So, I wouldnt be surprised to see this sort of technology in Nike Shoes and more very shortly. Better yet, go for the New Balance 990, 991, 992, or 993 which are made in the US and the UK. I wear size 13 and have flat feet, no arch support actually is more comfortable for me personally. The company known as UGG was founded in the USA in 1978 by Australian surfers Brian Smith and Doug Jensen. But in recent years, it realized the foolishness of its ways and has decreased its footprint (no pun intended) to an amount that is now smaller than the rest of the industry. Other folks online claimed these shoes lacked excellent arch support and many said they were unable to wear them as a result. Theyre ruled by the Communist Party of Vietnam, just as China is still ruled by the Chinese Communist Party. Cant wait to pass it on to my therapy friends. Launched in 2017 by bag industry veteran Michael Pratt, the brand Kizik sought to solve a problem familiar to anyone who wears shoes, slipping them on without using your hands. The original Kizik shoes used a better method of adjusting the instep the height of the arch. Its most famous for its insoles and foot care products, but it also sells a line of shoes. Hints for avoiding made in China: Just avoid them. Many still hand-make their shoes. That will make sure you have the perfect pair, even if you have wide feet. http://www.sasshoes.com, Thorogood work boots In the meantime, USA-made Chucks from prior to 2001 are starting to become collectors items. Rigorous testing has seen the lightweight metal piece compressed more than 100,000 times by a hydraulic press to ensure it stands up to repeated wear and doesnt wear down like a normal shoe would by repeatedly forcing your foot in. Kizik hypes their shoes as shoes for lazy people, but thats not giving these shoes enough credit. Or, visit a store in person to confirm that youre buying a shoe made from a country other than China. This means that some shoes (even within the same model number) might be made in China OR in another country like Vietnam. As a result of trade tariffs against China in 2019, Crocs committed to diversifying its supply chain to lessen its reliance on China for products users can buy in the USA. Its hard to categorize Kiziks offerings as stylish. Again, your best bet is to go to a brick and mortar store and check the label for yourself. LOVE them ! Shouldnt keep you from buying them. We fight trying to get her shoes on. Check the label. There are a lot of people like me out here! This NPR article does a good job of explaining why shoe manufacturing is almost certainly never going to return to the United States. Home Footwear Brands The China Report Card. We love that it helps with stinky feet! The rest are Australian-based Web sitesWild Wool AustraliaEmu AustralianKoalabiUgg Since 1974Ugg Boots Made in AustraliaUgg AustraliaOriginal Ugg Boots. But Im satisfied that theyre telling the truth. But its still not China). And forget about proprietary anything. Not designed to be worn without socks. The Kiziks, which started life as a Kickstarter success story, work like this: You know how lazy people crush the heels of their shoes when they shove their feet in? But China is clearly still their largest manufacturing supplier, and they dont make it easy on their Web site to find the country of origin of any particular product. Crocs is another American company, based in Broomfield, Colorado. Yup. I washed mine but didnt dry them in a machine. Even for those without disabilities, its an exciting development in technology with the appeal of one of the worlds most coveted brands. Your shoes fit perfect: just like they were regular lace-up shoes. Nike is, of course, the poster child for an apparel company that has completely sold out to China. And worse, by outsourcing to China, Vans has all but guaranteed that its styles will be heavily counterfeited, so if you buy from any third party seller, theres a decent chance youll be getting a knock-off. Or, of course, visit a brick and mortar store to check the box for yourself. As with Red Wing, their Web site does a nice job of identifying where their products are made. I bought my first pair of Kizik shoes when I had hip problems and then a hip replacement. Puma was founded in 1948 in Germany and continues to be headquartered there. Anta, incidentally, already owns brands like Wilson Sporting Goods and Louisville Slugger. Obviously for a whole workout you want to wear socks but these wouldnt be the shoes for that anyway. In addition, people like me have feet that swell and recede according to exercise, weather, etc. What didnt we like? Maybe you should stop calling them lazy people and stigmatizing legit disabilities. Who doesnt wear socks with their tennis shoes? If you marketed it only as a medical device, you wouldnt get any of the young people and less of the people that could actually use it as a medical device. Unfortunately, I dont see anything that would resemble some of the nice sneakers like Nike, Adidas, or Under Armour that is American. I bought the light grey Kizik Athens to replace my worn out everyday Merrell Tetrex shoes which are discontinued. Hi, Im an American from Pennsylvania. I also would like to point out that you do not have to wear socks with these, matter of fact Ive never worn socks with these! He loved them! Finn Comfort work shoes being a nurse made in Germany. Hints for avoiding made in China: Aside from asking and getting a sample of customer reports on Amazon product listings, your best bet is to visit a physical store and check the box for yourself. I actually would put the deciding factor on if you should buy KIZIK Shoes on one small factor, seemingly stupid factor: do you wear socks. Granted, the governments of Mexico, Thailand, Nicaragua, and Vietnam arent necessarily pure as the driven snow either, but the point here is to avoid putting too much power and money into feeding the biggest beast of all. I hate the CCP and Im saddened that U.S.A who is a superpower of the world hands our businesses to countries that stand against our beliefs and are potentially our enemies. Better yet, go for the New Balance 990, 991, 992, or 993 which are made in the US and the UK. But it was entertaining and got my curious: are the Kizik shoes any good? Thanks for the honest review. Pretty incredible, right?! Reebok ceased being a British company when it was acquired by Reebok; it recently was acquired by Authentic Brands Group, which has plans to expand to China, and with its ownership of iconic brands like Aeropostale, Forever 21, Brooks Brothers, Barneys, Izod, Juicy Couture, Eddie Bauer, Nine West and many more, it would be a one-stop shop if CCP-backed entities wanted to take it over once it goes public. Portugal, Italy and Spain produce a lot of shoes. 5 out of 5 came from China. But there are plenty of small businesses in Australia who make ugg boots using Australian workers and Australian sheep whom UGG has essentially blocked out of the worlds largest marketplace so that they and China are the only beneficiaries. Specifically, I asked them very specifically what percentage of their products were made in China or Vietnam, and how I could tell from online listings where they came from. Hints for avoiding made in China: Buy one of the models I listed above offline or online and youll be guaranteed get an authentic, solidly built made in the USA product. If I could find a way to get them re-soled, I would (actually, TIL that I can!). Finally, a brand that gets a solid A. The factory used to be in Warrington but I think has moved to Lakeland more recently. I buy a new pair every few years, but even my old pairs going back many years are still in incredible shapeIve worn the soles down to nothing, but the stitching and leather are still in perfect shape and look brand new when I run them through a washing machine. Both countries have atrocious records when it comes to human rights, civil liberties, and the environment. Id give them a B. KIZIK offers a wide variety of styles and you can find one that you might like. But of course, Nike and its celebrity spokespeople are interested in the billions of people who (supposedly) will want to buy their products in China, and so they will clearly fold like a cheap tent to the CCPs bullying rather than risk offending the CCP. Now to be clear, like most other shoe companies New Balance does make most of its products out of China and Vietnam. Hints for avoiding made in China: Buying online is going to be hit-or-miss. From my casual observation, it looks like they may be making a dent. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Rad Power Bikes Review: Are Rad Power Electric Bikes Any Good? In 1960, 80% of Americans with sneakers had Converse, and they ran a huge plan out of Lumberton, NC. The shoes exceeded my expectations. It consisted of a pair of little hidden velcro strips which ran vertically along the sides of the tongue where it would attach to the underside of where shoelace holes usually go. Its that simple. I also didnt half-size up and my shoes stretched to fit my true size great. Living in Hawaii, its always summery hot and humid and socks just make wearing sneakers even more hot and humid and the Athens breathe very well without me having to switch to flip-flops on really scorching days. Just got a Vietnam pair from Amazon that I will be returningsigh. Noat made in Israel. Mephisto shoes, including the Mephisto, Mobils, and Sano lines, appear to be made out of Mephistos factories in Portugal and France, except for its Allrounder line which is made in China. KIZIK claims these are the perfect outdoor shoes for going indoors and outdoors often. Like Timberland, Vans is owned by VF Corporation. The best we can do now is to try to starve any remaining manufacturing in China. The above are some of the highest quality and longest lasting shoes for everyday wear that are made today but Back in the day shoes used to last forever, or at least a lifetime. I like to wear all of my shoes loose. Doing a little internet digging, it appears that F.A.S.T is actually owned by HandsFree Labs. Whats especially galling about footwear brands is that so many of them are associated with the countries they originated in. But many companies have started to diversify their supply chain, either because they recognize the foolishness of allowing China to monopolize their production, or (more likely) simply because China is becoming too expensive. Re. The 1000 Mile boot you see to your right at one point had been made in China, but now its made in the USA; even the raw materials are from the USAthe upper leather is from Chicago, the outsole leather is from WIlliamsport, PA, and the laces are from Bowling Green, KY or Landrum South Carolina. Right now, Kizik Shoes are just sold online and on other eCommerce websites like Amazon and Zappos. Communism does two things very wellfirst, it eliminates corruption among the masses (only The Party Elite are allowed to cheat and stealeveryone else goes to prison or gets executed); second, it dehumanizes people to the point where they are happy to become the equivalent of manufacturing robots working long hours at slave wages, as long as The Party tells them this is what they should be doing. Im young and healthy but Im still happy to put on shoes so easily. If you happen to be in Japan, youre in luckConverse Japan (which is not affiliated with the main Converse brand owned by Nike, but does produce the same designs), does clearly specify the country of origin on its Web site. Any consumer who cares about the future of their country needs to buy at least one pair of work boots, hiking boots, athletic shoes, or casual shoes from them. There were a couple of things we did not like about the KIZIK Shoes we tried. -Limited sizes. I did a spot check on their official Amazon store, and sure enough, best sellers like their Mens CL Leather CTE Fashion Sneaker, their Mens Classic Harman Run Sneaker, their Womens Classic Leather Sneaker and their Womens Clssic Renaissance Shoes were all made in Vietnam. Kizik shoes were great as tying my replacement hip side was not possible. Double H has been around for a while; look them up on Wikipedia. I cant say enough good things about Red Wing Shoes. Some New Balance shoes are indeed made in the UK but are expensive. Does anyone know if wearing cotton socks will hinder the ability of my foot to slip in without any pull on the socks? I asked her about the Womens Hazel Pointe and she said it was made in India. So clearly, their customer service people are being told to be very non-committalwhen I pressed they doubled down claiming that the information I asked was impossible to get. Hints for avoiding made in China: As with Adidas, by far the best thing to do is to go to a Nike store or outlet store and read the box. If you go to Amazon, be sure to double-check the Customer Questions and Answers and Customer Reviews for the keyword China, and be sure to avoid third party sellers. Yes, please update the lazy comments. For the last 20 years Ive bought nothing but 990s, and I can personally attest to how long they last. And the UGG brand was never Australian. The New Balance sales guy explained to me that the price went up because the lockdown severely impacted the facilities in New England (in other show of great patriotism they converted some of the factories to make face masks during the lockdown when PPE was difficult to find). Now I just need to get my husband a pair! Hints for avoiding made in China: This is one where Id make sure to visit a store in person and check the box. As I described in the introduction to these report cards, my approach here is to list out the top footwear brands by popularity and then to give them a letter grade based on how much of their supply chain they allow China to monopolize AND how shameless they are in kowtowing to the China Communist Party. If you are looking for a high quality dress shoe that you are willing to maintain its worth buying from one of the small companies still surviving out there. Washing the Kizik in the washing machine works using a short wash cycle and no dryer for me with no breakdown of the shoe. I was going to give them a B here, but it makes me nervous that theyve clearly got their fingers to the wind, hoping that consumers forget about the CCPs atrocities and treat China any other country. Hints for avoiding made in China: Dont buy UGG brand boots. Hush Puppies does a very good job of hiding their country of origin from customersits nowhere on their Web site, and on very few Amazon product pages. In short, its a mess. You can search the Customer Question and Answer and Reviews, but the country of manufacture may vary even by size and color. Bear in mind that even variations of size and color in the same model may be made in China and supporting the Chinese Communist regime. As of 2019, about 30% of its products were made in China, but it committed to bringing it down to 10% by 2020. When I pressed, the woman on the line told me to tell her what product I was interested in, and shed be able to look it up. They won in the US, but they lost in Australia. KIZIK shoes actually get handsfree functionality thanks to aerospace-grade titanium. 2. I was intrigued and interested in purchasing these shoes. One way that I have managed to buy clothes and shoes bearing popular brand names, without feeding the CCP beast, has been through online and brick-mortar sites that offer quality, used items. 1. To be 100% honest with you: many companies provide us with products to review. Im guessing you really could get away with machine washing them on a very delicate cycle in cold water. Hints for avoiding made in China: If youre feeling lucky, visit a brick-and-mortar store to look at the box. For those of us who are lazy and dont like to tie our shoes, Kizik is a godsend. That said, the very least we can do as consumers is vote with our wallets to make sure shoe companies dont put all their eggs into the China basket. Adidas has been working to relocate manufacturing from China to Vietnam, perhaps because it realizes it has too much tied up in China, and perhaps due to the tariffs that Presidents Trump and Biden put in place. Extremely high quality. I checked Amazon, and surely enough Pumas two most popular models, their Tazen 6 Fade Cross-Trainers and their Roma Basic Sneaker both appear to be made in Vietnam, if the most recent reviews are accurate. Fortunately, the choice of European made shoes in Europe is still quite large. I look forward to receiving my first pair of Kizik shoes so that I can feel like a normal person wearing shoes again. Tired of having the sock heel halfway up my calf. The commercial was long: like 3 minutes long. Models include 577, 670, 911, 991 and R770. Through the years its been owned by a number of different pharmaceutical companies, from Schering-Plough to Merck to Bayer. There are many reports of Ecco shoes that are made in China being a shadow of what they once were (https://ctwatchdog.com/business/ecco-shoes-warning-almost-new-expensive-shoes-disintegrate) and yet Ecco persists in spinning its PR to paint its China factories in the most glowing of lightsironic that they purport to be a champion of human rights, religious freedom, freedom of association, and against forced laborand yet 40% of all the money you pay for a made in China Ecco shoe goes to the worst regime for human rights in global history. Theres no indication if or when these will ever return. Six years of development went into developing a heel that would expand and pop back into place as you step into the shoe, eliminating the need to untie or tie laces or peel back the heel in order to jam your heel in. My wife has literally crushed her heel and she doesnt give two shakes about it! Until I see a little more transparency here, theyre going to get a D. Shame on them. The CCP is starting to throw its weight aroundit organized a boycott of Western brands in March 2021 because these brands hurt the CCPs feelings after they dared to question labor practices in Xinjian. If you hate socks, with a passion, as we do, then you might want to pass and take a look at another shoe brand like Allbirds or Rothys. KIZIK Shoe review: are these shoes worth the hype? When I went to the New Balance Outlet, I got a pair for about $180. Did you know that before UGG (all caps) became a brand name, the term ugg (lowercase) was used for years to describe the style of sheepskin boots that started in Australia? Other popular styles like the Sienna Shootie and the Sienna Boot are made in India. I thought, this might be a fluke, I need to try again. Nope, I attempted to slide my other foot in and WOOP, once again, it fits like a glove. My daughter has a very wide foot and the wide size worked for her. Found your review in a search for whether I could wash Kiziks. This is why we need to buy made in USA or made in Europe if we can afford it, as well as support emerging countries who value human rights. Do you know of other shoes or sneakers not made in China worthy of mention here? Ecco shoes are made our in a variety of countries, including Portugal, Thailand, Vietnam, and China. Diadora, several sneakers from the Heritage line are Made in Italy Instead they have the sort of broad, unobtrusive appeal more akin to Allbirds than the sneakers people are entering raffles for. It should go without saying that in order for a product to be accessible you need to be able to gain access to it, and by prioritizing function above all else Kizik is more able to put its shoes on the feet of people who may have trouble putting on other footwear. They arrived quickly. This is a great point. Until recently you were able to get these for under $100, but after the COVID lockdowns the price skyrocketed. New Balance was established in 1906 in Boston. Sadly, they declared bankruptcy in 2001, at which point their brand was purchased by Nike and all of their US-based plants were shut down. The shoes were just incredibly comfortable. But other popular styles like Unisex Low-Top Trainers are being reported as made in China. I hate socks. They restock pretty quickly. Specifically, I havent had any problems finding their Moab 2 Hiking Shoes made in Vietnam. It started in 2001 as a boating shoe, but quickly gained popularity as a casual and comfortable blog. The crucial design element for Kiziks hands-free shoes which, over the years have included smart shoes, tasteful leather low-tops, and a sportier knit sneaker in line with modern trends is a flexible F1 Titanium Arc in the heel that bends outwardly for entry before coming back into place for a normal, snug fit.