“Manufacturing good” is the mindset of TOMBOLO, a company founded by Jimmy Tomczak, 23, a University of Michigan neuroscience graduate and Detroit entrepreneur. TOMBOLO’s “paperfeet” – paper-thin sandals for men, women, and children – are the highly anticipated sandal of summer.
They’re made from upcycled (recycled) outdoor advertisement material, or simply, billboard vinyl. Tomczak invented a patent-pending technique to repurpose the giant roadside banners that would otherwise be thrown away, transforming the material into creative minimalist footwear for barefoot runners, everyday adventurers, and anyone interested in an ultra-portable, rollable and pocketable footwear solution.
“Every year in the US alone, so much billboard vinyl is thrown away that, if laid out, it would more than cover the state of Massachusetts,” Tomczak says. “TOMBOLO prevents that waste from going into landfills by creating gear that feels really good on your feet. Like other shoes that are used for barefoot running, training, or reflexology benefits, paperfeet are thin enough to be a second skin, but thick enough to offer adequate protection.”
Proponents of the barefoot movement cite the benefits of barefooting as a healthy and holistic solution that reduces stress injuries common to using padded running shoes. The Barefoot Runners Society, The Society for Barefoot Living, The Living Barefoot Show, and other groups support the movement as books like Christopher McDougal’s New York Times bestseller, Born to Run, gain massive public attention.
“People who don’t wear shoes when they run have an astonishingly different strike,” says Daniel E. Lieberman, professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University and co-author of a paper appearing in the journal Nature. “By landing on the middle or front of the foot, barefoot runners have almost no impact collision, much less than most shod runners generate when they heel-strike.”
WALK IN HIS SHOES…
Jimmy Tomczak
With tides of passion for social entrepreneurship, Jimmy Tomczak is surfing his way to success by a launching an eco-beach adventure gear company that creates uncommon goods for the collective good. The 22 year old Michigan native created his paperfeet minimalist billboard sandals as TOMBOLO LLC’s first adventure. Unveiled in June 2010, his innovations made from upcycled outdoor advertisements have been sold around the world and featured in national media. As a social entrepreneur, Jimmy invents and empowers, managing his own ventures since 2001. Jimmy, a StartingBloc Fellow (Boston ’10), completed the Program in Entrepreneurship while earning a B.S. in Neuroscience from the University of Michigan. He is introducing youth to hands-on social business through everyday exploration and adventures that create the stories we were meant to share. Find Jimmy on Twitter (@paperfeet) and Facebook or at paperfeet.com
TOMBOLO*
TOMBOLO “manufactures good” – both the tangible and intangible innovations that make the world a better place. TOMBOLO LLC of Ann Arbor, Michigan, creates these uncommon goods for the collective good by upycling and repurposing material that cannot be effectively recycled. TOMBOLO is known for paperfeet, paper-thin barefoot shoes built in the USA using durable and waterproof repurposed advertisement vinyl, aka: billboards. TOMBOLO’s line includes functional eco-beach adventure gear that encourages creative reuse, conscious consumption, and a get-outside-and-live mindset. As part of TOMBOLO’s commitment to creativity for a better world, the company champions local, ethical labor with products made in the USA. By reducing waste, using sustainable manufacturing processes, and encouraging youth to innovate by reducing our carbon footprint and environmental impact, TOMBOLO is saving the world, one step at a time. For more information, visit tombologoods.com
Source: TOMBOLO
