US shoes-from-plastic brand begins Outlet rollout

Online shoes-from-plastic brand Rothy’s is opening its first physical stores in four key US locations.

The brand creates women’s shoes from recycled materials, including plastic bottles, and has a burgeoning following in the territory. Its new stores will open in downtown Manhattan, Los Angeles, Boston and Washington DC.

A further five locations are planned to open in the US next year. To date Rothy’s has operated just one store – in its home city of San Francisco. But it has sold online across the US and internationally.

The shoes are all flats with knitted materials, retailing from $125–165. The popularity of the footwear has rested on the Rothy’s marketing savvy and advertising investment on social media. The firm has thus far raised $42 million and earnt $140 million in revenue last year. It has recycled around 32 million plastic bottles.