I created an account just to get to the bottom of this. I started skating again after a long hiatus blah blah blah I won’t bore you guys with that tired story.
I wanna recap some things about shoes I’ve seen in other threads.
Anyway, like many skaters starting after a long break I am weary of the over saturation of Nike, Adidas etc that are now in skateboarding. I‘m not down to spend 90 bucks on a pair of skate shoes that were straight up created with slavery. I mean, I’m not without sin as a consumer but buying an overpriced shoe by a corporate company that bribed its way into the culture WHILE ALSO committing slavery seems wild to me. That being said the shoes do look good. Which is a big part of their success.
So I’ve been researching new companies. It seems like the “core” companies have fallen off a bit. I bought a pair of Lakais recently and they are honestly feeling really nice. Not sure what’s up with the allegations of sub par quality with these brands. I think it comes down to the core shoes just not being cool anymore. Which is honestly fine. It happens.
I recently found out about Cariuma, which although not perfect seems like a step in the right direction. But I found the Slap thread on cariuma and y’all tore them a new *sshole.
The main complaints were that they are “buying” their way into the culture, but then the same people are talking about how they would rather buy a pair of Dunks with the same money. Did Nike not “buy” their way into the culture? It’s remarkable how they accomplished this by literally just chucking wads of money at it. So what’s new about this?
Another complaint was Berra’s involvement. He’s a Scientologist. (Legit complaint) And just not cool. That’s the issue as I understand it. And while I also understand how problematic Scientology is, he’s “employed” by Cariuma. He’s not an owner, etc. it’s a problem, absolutely. But it’s not “massive slavery shoe farm” level problem. High level old head Pro skaters have been fairly deeply infiltrated by Scientology unfortunately. It needs to be addressed. But if we tossed every company that sponsored a Scientologist in the trash that would also get rid of Nike. Hmmm.
Lastly, another complaint, that the shoe is ugly.
True it is. But I’m willing to deal with ugly shoes if it’s just for skateboarding in. I don’t think they’re “that bad” honestly, but hopefully they get a shoe going without that massive logo. I have to wear work boots during the day so I have become less picky with my sneakers. Also: It’s all subjective, recall that Vans where considered aesthetically unacceptable in the late 90’s early ‘00s. Tastes can change REAL quick.
The point of this thread: are Cariumas really THAT bad guys? No company is perfect and there’s always going to be compromise in our society as consumers. But shouldn’t we allow this step in the right direction? Is the hate really necessary when all of the complaints can be leveled equally at other companies that are “accepted”?
What other shoes are good and somewhat “ethical”? Last Resort?
Topic: After hiatus, subject of skate shoes oddly intense (Read 5673 times)