Grisport Footwear: Walking On… Sunshine!

Don’t break out into song this is serious!Only joking, so..

What type of questions do you ask when buying a pair of boots?

“Do you have these in my size?, Are these boots suitable for what I do?, Will you do me a deal?!”
All common questions, but have you considered...

Where and how your boots are made?

The “where” is easy, everything is made in China (not like the good ol’ days) and as for the “how”…what does that matter as long as they work, right?
Wrong!

Where and How? are just two of the many questions that we at Head to the Hills ask when deciding what footwear to stock, and I would encourage everyone to ask these questions when considering a new pair of boots.

At Head to the Hills our main brand of footwear that we stock is Grisport. Now I could write about the exceptional quality and comfort of the footwear however, to become the main brand of footwear at Head to the Hills, Grisport footwear was (and still is) put through a battery of rugged, torturous and usually break neck tests!

Instead I’m going to write about how Grisport stood up to two important questions that we ask when considering any potential product;

Where and how is the footwear made?

All Grisport boots and shoes are made in the Grisport factory in Italy at the foot of the Montebelluna hills, “What not in china?” I hear you cry “That’s going to be pricey!”
Usually, being my all too pessimistic self I might agree, if I didn’t already know that the Grisport range is actually reasonably priced.

Grisport achieve an Italian made, high quality, reasonably priced range of footwear by powering their own factory…That’s right 1000 hunky Italian men peddling on sweaty bikes 8 hours a day… Sadly ladies, again I am joking.

In early 2008 Grisport completed €8,000,000 worth of work to become a fully solar powered factory. The solar panels cover over 7 football pitches in size and make Grisport one of, if not the greenest footwear companies in the world, reducing carbon emissions by over 1000 tons per year and reducing the fine dusts and oxides given out by 2.4 tons per year!

(I am considering starting my own Italian footwear company, I only need 1000 more hunky Italian men! Any CV’s or ladies who wish to be on the interview panel…)

On a serious note, The impact which humans have had and are continuing to have on the planet has been very well documented, and still people do not realize the importance of their actions. I once heard it said that one person cannot make a difference but every, one person can. Buying local food produce, refusing carrier bags in shops, re-using and recycling more are simple measures that every one person can take to reduce their impact on the planet.

At Head to the Hills we are reducing our impact on the environment by trying to only give carrier bags when asked, we use only degradable carrier bags, reusing and recycling everything we possibly can, and making sure that the companies that we buy from are doing all they can to reduce their impact…so don’t forget, the next time you’re buying a new pair of walking boots, ask where and how they’re made.

Aidan, Head to the Hills. Ambleside.