Mion: When Eco-Commitment is more than just about products - 22 Jul 2007
I first met Erik Burbank of Mion Footwear™ (Co-Founder and Director Sales & Marketing) at my first tradeshow and right around the same time that I started putting together Laneo. Mion had just begun selling their first line of outdoor active footwear and what struck me most at the time was the simplicity of their whole brand, their product – a sports sandal that was actually floating in a see-through aquarium, and their ultra-simplistic booth, that really stood out from the rest of the crowd. (There are some pretty elaborate booths at sports tradeshows. Some of are more like hotel lobbies and first class lounges at airports, which for me, is pretty peculiar).
Anyway, I clearly remember that I had hardly gotten close to their booth and this big guy (Erik is about 1m95 or 6’4) comes bounding out and practically squashes my hand with a vigorous bone-shattering handshake! We very quickly understood the obvious connection there was between our two aspiring initiatives but what startled me at the time, and even today, is that “environmentally friendly” means so much more at Mion than at majority of the companies that I have been in touch with.
You basically can’t finish a sentence when talking to Erik without him commenting on what measurable aspect of manufacturing process they’re working on to improve or what new compound they’ve just discovered. Even today, as I passed by their booth, Erik shouted to me from the other side of their demo area. It seems that they just got some sort of scientific recognition on a hyper sophisticated glue that is going to make it possible for their sandal to “naturally disintegrate” if buried in soil (that’s another one of his passionate subjects). And if that’s not impressive enough, Mion created the industry’s first “EcoMetrics” label to help them make better choices and to give us (consumers) visibility into the impact of ours.
Aside form the environmental aspect of these products, Mion’s products are truly unique and don’t look like anything else on the market. They are the result of Martin Keen’s (Co-Founder and Director of R&D) desire to create innovative performance footwear that represents his two primary passions: the ocean and his sculptures. Martin invents with a combination of imagination and pragmatism. The fruit of these passions is footwear that looks completely unique and performs like nothing else you’ve ever worn.
While their job is to make shoes, Erik say’s, Mion’s mission is to help the industry evolve toward better environmental practices. “We all know that making performance shoes is not a “green” process. But we don’t have to accept that.” He’s right of course. Every choice we make as consumers and athletes has an effect on the environment. If we wish to make a difference, all we have to do is make educated purchase decisions.
As for Mion, they’ve committed to not only reduce their footprint but to move towards products that are actually good for the environment. Their aggressive goal should inspire all of us to test what’s possible.
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