Page 41 - October 2015 Green Builder Magazine
P. 41
Good Cause. KEEN donates work SPONSORED CONTENT
boots to the Volunteer Boot Library
at The ReBuilding Center, a used 39
building material resource in
Portland, Ore.
SEAN O’CONNOR www.greenbuildermedia.com 10.2015
A KEEN Sense of Purpose
In 2013, the Bureau KEEN footwear has earned a reputation for
of Labor Statistics manufacturing tough but stylish outdoor wear and
reported 52,590 work boots, but the company is also doing its part to
on-the-job foot promote sustainability and strengthen communities.
injuries, resulting in KBY HEATHER WALLACE, GBM MARKETING
an average of nine EEN FOOTWEAR BECAME an overnight success when reps sold 50,000 pairs of
missed days of
work. Eighty shoes as a first-time exhibitor at Outdoor Retailer. Founded by Martin Keen and
percent of those
Rory Fuerst, KEEN has been creating toe-protecting outdoor “lifestyle products”
injuries were caused
by an object 30 since 2003.
pounds or less
After solidifying its position as a leader in outdoor recreation footwear, the
impacting the foot.
company began to look at what was next. Work boots were a logical progression,
as they were already creating products to protect the toes.
“KEEN was founded on the idea of creating hybrid footwear—styles that provided comfort
and protection. Safety and work footwear is a natural extension of this principle,” says Mark
Reilly, senior merchandising manager for KEEN. “We’ve spent more than a decade perfecting
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