Q. Name/Name of company (if applicable) 

A. END Footwear

 

Q. How long has your product/service/company been in the market? 

A. Our first products arrived in stores mid August 2008.

Q. How did you determine need for product/service (or why do anticipate a need)? 

A. After 15 years designing for Converse, Fila and Nike, Andrew decided to strike out on his own and start his own design studio, which as the Director of Global Footwear at Nike for their Sports Culture division, this was an unprecedented move.  With his leap of faith, Antler Studios was born and for the first year, Andrew was working with almost all of Nike’s competition, Adidas, Keen, Danner, Brine, Oakley, Puma to name a few in helping them determine where to head from a design perspective.  What he found was an industry in a rut, still building rocketships for feet with features and technology that the consumer did not need, nor were they asking for.  In addition, none of them was looking into sustainability seriously as an urgent shift that was needed to make footwear have less of an impact on the planet.

 

Q. Why did you choose the Portland, Oregon, to start your business?  

A. Andrew has been here for ten years and I am a life long Oregonian who grew up in the burbs.  Portland is frankly the only place we feel END could have started thanks to the unique market presence we have as Sneaker City, USA and the Sustainability Capital of North America.  Nowhere else could you find a local population who understood why and how bringing sustainability and high performance footwear could in fact be done.

 

Q. What are your impressions of the entrepreneurial community in Portland? 

A. Like a lot of things about Portland, it is a unique and special place to start a company.  I remember hearing from people I was talking to in Seattle, San Francisco and LA at VC and Angel groups and often times unsolicited, people would comment on how great Portland is for coaching and mentoring start ups.

 

Q. How would you like to see it grow/change?  

A. Of course the follow up statement they all had to this praise was that we had to compensate for our lack of available Angels and funds.  I have come to believe there is some degree of truth to this statement and it is just a simple function of population.  I do think the state has a unique opportunity to take advantage of our leadership position in sustainability and if Oregon does not put funds to work, we will lose this advantage to cities like Denver, CO or Austin, Texas where bigger pools of private dollars are available.  I keep hoping the Governor does not bank it all on clean energy.  There are a lot of great opportunities to grow the tax base by supporting industries.

Q. How are you involved in the community and how has it helped shape your business? 
A. Both Andrew and I feel END has to grow deep roots here at home if we ever want global success.  Part of this is based in my belief that Oregon consumers have excellent BS detectors when it comes to greenwashing and will go out of their way to support authentic “green” brands and companies who are making sincere efforts in sustainability.  I often tell crowds that Portland should create an “Oregon Sustainable Seal of Approval” for those Oregon products that leave the state and go nationally and internationally and are fighting to get into the eco-friendly product channel.  It is not uncommon for me to hear someone in LA say that if it is a product accepted in Portland, that it is good enough for them.  I also spend a good deal of time talking to College and university students all over the state in both undergrad and grad programs.  They are the next generation of eco-entrepreneurs and it is our job to shepherd them and give back.  Last is in the office we are always going out to volunteer time, like at Forest Park where this month we will gather on a Saturday and rip English Ivy from our majestic giants so they can survive into the next 25 generations to come.

 

Q. How does OEN assist you/how are you specifically benefiting from the organization?
A. OEN has and will be thought of by me as the launch pad for our fundraising here in Portland.  My memories of events and Pub Talks are great because in the end, it was the OEN members who in every instance volunteered their time to help.  I have sort of used Dennis Powers as the OEN poster child as it relates to END because if it were not for Dennis, I honestly believe I would not be writing this article.  After our very first PubTalk, Jim O’Leary made sure we shared a glass of wine with Dennis afterwards and from there Dennis donated around six hours of his time to assist in sharpening our business plan.  From there, it is infrastructure.  A system that has been carefully laid out with coaching, mentoring, workshops, classes to help the Oregon entrepreneur get to lift off.

 

Q. What are your favorite websites/magazines/events that you read/attend to keep yourself informed about the business community/your specific market? 

A. I read a lot of our industry stuff on SNEWS and from our industry association, the OIA.  There are the core magazines like Outside, Runner’s World and Backpacker, which gives me insight into trend and style.  Sustainable Industries, Treehugger.com to name a few of the “green” sites I visit.  Finally, I spend a lot of time seeking out the micro trends via the “social media” networks that are dominating.  Our influencers, the twentysomthing, the millennial are into instant gratification and instant communication on Facebook, Myspace or Twitter.

 

Q. Any advice for aspiring entrepreneurs?  

A. Surround yourself with people smarter than you.  Remember when Dennis Powers is treating your business plan (the document you poured your entire self worth into) like a piñata on Cinco De Mayo that when you come out the other side, your business plan, Power Point and elevator pitch will be ten times stronger.   Remain open to the possibility that your idea is bigger than you first dreamt and that it is okay to truly aim for the stars.  Finally, if it were easy…everyone would be doing it.