Surat-based siblings Parth and Karishma Dalal founded ‘Reroute’, a shoe businesses that uses sugarcane residue and plastic bottles to make shoes. Their goal is to reuse waste and make 100% carbon-neutral products…
Do you reconsider throwing away old shoes? The WHO estimates 35 crore pairs of shoes are abandoned annually. Our environment is threatened by non-biodegradable shoes in landfills and oceans.
Gujarati siblings Parth and Karishma Dalal have a creative concept to revolutionize the footwear sector, which has long been linked with high carbon emissions, by combining technology, sustainability, and social responsibility.
They founded ‘Reroute’ in May to make shoes from sugarcane residue and throwaway water bottles.
“We wanted 100% carbon-neutral products. We wanted to minimize sugarcane residue and plastic bottles from the planet and then repurpose them, adds the 31-year-old.
Bengaluru and Delhi buyers have flocked to these shoes in recent months. They sold 400 pairs of these sneakers last month.
Legacy lessons for future
In 2016, Surat native Parth moved to New York for his pharmacy masters. After working for pharmaceutical businesses, he returned to India in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.
A random encounter with Karishma and his father inspired him to launch a sustainable business. Parth recalls their father, who was well-known in Gujarati society, telling them how many wealthy families throw away shoes after scarcely using them. “This just adds to the unnecessary pile of shoes in landfills,” he says.
The siblings wondered if high-end shoe buyers would make sustainable and ecologically friendly purchases if given the chance.
Parth and Karishma resolved to make sustainable, eco-friendly, high-quality shoes. These shoes are recyclable, unlike leather or rubber.
Unfortunately, their father died early in the pandemic. Undeterred, the siblings pursued their father’s concept.
In 2021, they began analyzing footwear industry gaps, which have grown rapidly. Shoes are made of leather or synthetic rubber. This substance never decomposes and releases hazardous chemicals that deplete ozone and overheat the planet. Parth says they require twice the energy and water to make.
Additionally, people wear more shoes than chappals (slippers). Instead of leather boots, they want chappal-like shoes. So we made lightweight, sockless shoes, he says. These sneakers don’t stink because of their natural materials.
“Our idea could also reduce shoe waste in landfills. Their lives would be extended by 3-4 years. Our father taught us to recycle, he says.
Sustainable, sockless shoes
The twins identified a sustainable way to make eco-friendly shoes after two years of research.
India uses sugarcane extensively. Slag remains after drinking ganne ka juice (sugarcane juice). Parth says he found a Brazilian resin supplier that invented sugarcane EVA copolymer while working in pharmaceuticals.
Parth worked with the company to employ sugarcane EVA to make the shoes’ outsoles soft and comfy. Additionally, they 3D-knit the shoes from renewable and recyclable materials like merino wool and plastic water bottles.
“First, we make pallets from plastic bottles which are then melted into yarn,” Parth adds of the shoes’ recycled plastic bottle construction. We add merino wool to make propitiatory threads. While sugarcane EVA outsoles provide durability and flexibility, yarns manufactured from single-use plastic bottles and merino wool with inherent antibacterial characteristics provide comfort for long-day use.
Neha Parekh, who has worn these shoes for almost four months, adds, “My corporate job requires long drives and standing. My uncomfortable shoes made my feet sweat. I wanted simple, comfy shoes or flats to wear daily.”
She says, “When I first wore Reroute shoes, I didn’t feel like they were plastic. Comfortable to wear. It feels feathery on my skin.”
Shoes weigh 180 grams and cost Rs 2,999. Parth says 95–110 grams are sugarcane residue. Uniquely, the pair knits shoes from 11 plastic bottles. Reroute’s knitwear have been made from approximately 40,000 plastic water bottles.
As per their company motto, ‘Made Without Regrets’, Parth explains,
“Our father taught us that you can’t sell a product if you don’t like it. When making shoes, we remembered this lesson.”
Our firm ethos is to develop items without regrets, he says. Parth said they will restore these shoes and donate them to the needy or recycle them to manufacture new products, like our father intended.
