Varieties of merino wool footwear are emerging faster than Netflix series about British aristocracy. Michael Andrew takes a look at the rise of the shoe that almost everyone – including his 95-year-old grandma – is wearing. Some might say it all started with Allbirds. After all, to the average consumer, it was the New Zealand-American … Read more
With 27 speakers over a 10 hour event, Semi Permanent Aotearoa showed just how much New Zealand’s creative industry has to offer our economic and social rebuild. It’s a rare thing having 1,000 people in the same room at the same time in 2020. It’s even rarer to have 27 of a country’s most prestigious … Read more
All his life, Duncan Greive has basically hated his undies and found socks annoying. And then he tried Allbirds underwear. It is quite accurate to point out that fields as varied as medicine, transport and 90% of humans are brutally compromised by sexism. This, naturally extends to underwear, with most bras notoriously created for the … Read more
After years of specialising in low-carbon footwear, Allbirds has introduced a new line of sustainable apparel made from an unconventional yet innovative source. In April, when Allbirds announced it would be the first fashion label to introduce a sticker that measured the carbon footprint of each one of its products, it was seen as a … Read more
Business after Covid: A return to normal might seem appealing, but as Tim Brown of Allbirds writes as part of a new business series, now is the time to strive for something better. The Covid-19 crisis has yanked our freedoms out from underneath us. Our sense of safety, community, and day-to-day life is no longer … Read more
Every pair emits 7kg of carbon. They’re putting it on the shoe so no one can miss it. Allbirds founder Tim Brown tells Duncan Greive why it’s making the move, even in the depths of the Covid-19 crisis. “We’re right in the deep darks at the moment.” Tim Brown, former All Whites footballer and co-founder … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand. This week he talks to Tim Brown, co-founder of Allbirds. This week’s podcast has an extra special guest that’s recently been on the … Read more
‘Fail fast’ has gone from an intriguing idea to mainstream business orthodoxy in just a few short years. Jihee Junn went along to the pricey business event dedicated entirely to ‘falling forward’. It was about 9am by the time I arrived and instantly my senses were overloaded. One moment I’m wading through rush hour traffic making … Read more
Allbirds has a brand new product and investor – one from Brazil, the other from Hollywood. First, they came for our sheep. Then they came for our trees (but not before coming for our children). And now, they’ve come for our sweet, sweet sugar. I’m talking about Allbirds here, the San Francisco-based Kiwi footwear company … Read more
The Kiwi footwear has become a favourite of Silicon Valley elites. But are the shoes now furnishing the feet of top Republican and speaker of the house Paul Ryan? Jihee Junn investigates As the fire and fury raged through Washington DC, Donald Trump took to his Camp David retreat earlier this week to hash out … Read more
One of these things is a lot like the other – which is why Allbirds is suing Steve Madden for allegedly copying its signature Wool Runners. Three years ago, former All Whites player Tim Brown set out to make a woollen shoe. In 2017, everyone from Larry Page to Mindy Kaling is sporting Allbirds, rounding … Read more