Just for the 2010 VANCOUVER OLYMPICS…

FREE SHIPPING on orders at www.oliberte.com/shoes when shipped in Canada and USA. International Orders outside of Canada and USA will have a reduced fee of $20CAD.

This is valid starting today, February 9th, and ends February 28th at midnight after the Olympic closing ceremonies. Final returns will continue to have a $15CAD fee. Exchanges for sizes or styles will continue to be free.

Now that it’s aired, we can finally talk about Tal’s pitch in the Den on CBC’s Dragons’ Den.

We taped the show way back in May ‘09 and I was actually pitching for about 40 minutes. A lot has changed since then and what was cut out was that those shoes were just prototypes as we rushed to get the factories to make them in time for filming – our shoes on our site now are our full line to date, quite different and so far, doing well and you can order online at: www.oliberte.com/shoes That said, great experience to pitch in the Den.

About Jeanne Beker, to be honest, I didn’t have a clue who she was. I pretended I did and they cut out a part when I’m talking to Dianne Buckner where I said that I didn’t even know who she was. That said, yes, she was a bit tough on us but in all honesty, she’s not really our target market or has a strong sense of fashion that is not high-end fashion. We’re a bit more contemporary and a a bit out of her fashion-diva comfort. That said, our shoes were not fully launched when we pitched and just prototypes so we can respect her thoughts given what she had in front of her.

All the other dragons were pretty nice too – no complaints. We were really thinking it would come down to Brett and Arlene, but Brett really just wasn’t interested – made sense. Again, I have a lot of respect as given where they were sitting with no sales back in May, it’s a tough sell on the valuation. What they didn’t show was that at the end I’m shaking hands with all of them and Jim and Arlene ask me to get in touch with them after the show. We’ve been talking for a number of months about them possibly investing – it’s a process and we will see what happens. They are both very savy and love the idea behind Oliberté.

About the staff at CBC – just awesome! There are some super talented, highly underpaid superheros bringing great Canadian programming to our TVs. Thanks CBC for the chance and exposure.

In terms of moving forward, we’re getting there – we’re featured at the upcoming grammys, miss america and bet awards. Also, celebrities wearing and support our shoes already including: K’NAAN, Snoop Dog and Kirsten Stewart.

We already have signed European and Australian distribution agreements which is for 10,000 shoes for the next 12-14 months (just to start) and currently we are in about 25+ stores (mainly USA) across North America.

However, no matter the outcome, I’m being positive about the exposure. There were about 3,000 people that tried out across Canada, only 300 get invited to pitch to the dragons and then of those only 100 are shown on TV and about 75% of those have full segments as we did.

So yeah, again, wish I went on the show with our current line when we were in full production and not development, with all the sales and contracts we do have now. Oh well, that’s life. Luckily, still going strong and your continuing support has been key.

Pride. Power. Liberty. This is Africa.
Visit us at: www.oliberte.com

Check out our first first with footage from production in Ethiopia.

Music is K’NAAN’s “Waving Flag” which is the official song of Coca Cola’s FIFA World Cup 2010 Sponsorship.
Check K’NAAN and his music at: http://knaanmusic.ning.com/

So what makes our leather so special?

Here is some more pictures of our current production for the MEN’s ROVIA and Women’s ELIKA.

As we were beginning to talk to a number of charities interested in acquiring mbas without borders, I kept thinking what’s next – I talked to a lot of contacts and friends in the industry particularly in Africa and it came back to one thing – that they said “we don’t need another charity – we need jobs – we need something the world is willing to buy (i.e. a product) from Africa. A product that we can be proud of.

So i strated doing some digging at it turns out that there is not one single company working exlusively in Africa to make shoes for the international market.

You have the largest amount of natural rubber in Liberia and the Largest selection of livestock in Africa in Ethiopia plus a growing manufacturing industry – so why not!?! So that’s how the idea started.

“Oliberté eco ethical urban footwear from Africa”

Check it out: http://www.thepureindulgence.com/index.php/2009/09/oliberte-eco-ethical-urban-footwear-from-africa/

Oliberté in The Pure Indulgence

Thanks to raising awareness and pressure generated by the recent Greenpeace report entitled Slaughtering the Amazon, the footwear brands Nike, Adidas, Clarks and Timberland have all agreed to stop sourcing leather from areas of deforestation in the Amazon caused by intensive cattle farming. However, some of the manufacturing processes and ethics of those companies are still highly questionable, which makes their products an undesirable purchase even before you take into account their dubious fashion credentials.

Oliberté urban footwear, with their exemplary production ethics, sustainable materials sourcing and contemporary styling is a positive alternative to those big brand shoe companies. Here’s what they have to say about themselves…

“Oliberté is the first to market premium urban-casual footwear made in Africa. With every pair of Oliberté you buy, you make a powerful statement that Africa is proud, free and full of potential. You do this all while being a hero, because you are the reason men and women from Liberia to Swaziland to Ethiopia have a job, have food on the table and can send their children to school. Oliberté is not a charity, it is a company that believes you can change how the world views Africa and help build lives when you buy a pair of Oliberté shoes.”

• premium Ethiopian leather is strong, light and from traditionally farmed livestock
• the first footwear to be made using durable naturally processed Liberian rubber
• farmers, factory workers and suppliers are ensured fair pay and treated responsibly
• partnerships with factories to reduce carbon footprint and environmental impact
• providing local training and community development in every country we work

Oliberté are so new that there are just two styles in their range so far, but they both come in a wide choice of colours. The ladies Elika shoe is pictured above in the top row and the Men’s Rovia shoe in the bottom row. Currently they are only available at selected stores across Canada and the USA or online from their Canadian outlet (with the option of international shipping) but they are hoping to secure distributors in other regions very soon. We will update this article with any further news when we get it.

Cattle ranching is the biggest driver of Amazon rainforest destruction and contributes to make Brazil the fourth largest climate polluter in the world.

Oliberté Springwise.com gave us a nice post today! Check it out:
http://springwise.com/fashion_beauty/oliberte/

Amid all the many charity-focused efforts to help the people of developing African nations, others strive to provide economic empowerment and help African entrepreneurs establish sustainable businesses. We’ve covered several of these—including some of the microfinance initiatives that have popped up—but Canadian shoe company Oliberté is taking a different approach by sourcing and setting up its manufacturing operations in Africa instead.

Oliberté makes and sells what it says is the first line of footwear to be made from natural rubber in Liberia. Two styles of lightweight shoes are currently available: Elika for women, and Rovia for men. Both feature a rubber sole crafted naturally and fairly in Liberia along with premium goat and cow leather sewn in Ethiopia. Elika is priced at CAD 106, while Rovia is CAD 115. Oliberté ensures that farmers, factory workers and suppliers are all paid fairly and treated responsibly, and it supports local training and communities in every country it works in. It’s also working in partnership with factories to improve its environmental footprint, it says. Toward that end, Oliberté even promises to take its shoes back at the end of their useful life, with plans to recycle and make them new again.

The company’s website explains: “Africa is more than just poverty and Oliberté is the start of a revolution that shows, through urban footwear, this is the real Africa! With every pair of Oliberté bought, we are making a powerful statement that Africa is proud, free and full of potential. You do this all while being a hero, because you are the reason men and women from Liberia to Swaziland to Ethiopia have a job, have food on the table and can send their children to school. Oliberté is not a charity—it is a company that believes you can change how the world views Africa and help build lives every time you buy a pair of Oliberté shoes.”

Oliberté’s shoes are available both online and through select stores in the US and Canada. Retailers: one to offer up to your own ethical consumers…? (Related: Shoes for good — Coffee life stories — Yak down: luxury yarn with a story and a cause.)

As Production began this month, take a look at these pics for the MENS’ ROVIA and WOMENS’ ELIKA.