Our New Obsession – Coclico Shoes
Written by Urban Sherp on September 22nd, 2009
Who: Coclico; New York, NY
What: Kelp Clam Bootie
Where: Coclico.com; $350
Why We Love ‘Em: We are completely, completely obsessed with the entire fall collection of Coclico leather shoes. The collection is edgy, classic, fashion forward and timeless all at one time, if that’s possible. Was quite a challenge to choose just one to feature this week, but since it is fall we went with the lovely Kelp Clam Bootie. Love the creamy neutral color, the delicate perforations, the shape of wooden kitten heel and the detail of the curved footbed. A complete original.
Now you may be wondering how can we feature a leather shoe? Well, this is definitely a controversial issue for US. On the one hand, yes, there is no question that leather products are not animal-friendly and unfortunately in most cases the leather tanning process is incredibly toxic and wasteful. But what if the leather used was a by-product of the cattle industry? Salvaging hides that would otherwise be discarded. Although some might argue that the leather industry and the meat industry are so economically linked that leather can’t be considered a by-product but rather an integral part of the cycle. What if the leather is treated in eco-conscious facilities and dyed with vegetable dyes instead of toxic dyes like chrome? And what if leather shoes last 10 times longer than canvas shoes? Does that make them eco-friendly? Is using petrochemical based synthetic materials really a more eco-friendly option? Would love to hear your feed back on this controversial issue…
Coclico has made a conscious effort to make their leather shoes more eco-friendly and to reduce the carbon footprint of their manufacturing process. In addition to using more leathers dyed with fruit, seeds and bark (they still used chrome dyed leathers but make sure that they are dyed in factories that are regulated for water quality maintenance, efficiency practices, and chemical sequestration), they also use FSC certified wood and cork, lead-free and nickel free hardware with a percentage of recycled content, and are trying to use more water based solvents in their adhesives. To offset the production process they purchase carbon offsets that help finance a methane capture project and a trucking efficiency program.
And $350 isn’t too bad compared to the very Perforated Bootie from the Stella McCartney collection selling for $745, but hers are faux-suede….
