Sunnystep: Singapore mum builds shoe brand after spinal injury

What she needed were lightweight, stable and supportive shoes. But none of the 20 to 30 pairs in her closet fit the bill.

She began searching for more suitable shoes. She tried running shoes that were bulky and had a forward propulsion not suited for everyday walking, and orthotic shoes that were equally bulky, heavy and did not appeal to her tastes, she said. Flip flops were not even secured to the feet, and out of the question, she added.

Prior to her injury, the former data scientist had left her job in 2017 and attended a fashion trade show in Japan with the idea of starting a consumer brand. Among the suppliers she met was a small shoe manufacturer from China. In 2019, she reached out to them to create a shoe that could carry her through recovery.

“Because it wasn’t a big factory, they didn’t have a minimum order. They were willing to experiment with me. I just had to pay for the samples,” Mao told CNA Women.

Over long WeChat conversations, and six months of sampling, Mao finally created a pair that eased her pain – a minimalist white shoe without laces or embellishments.

The shoes provided Mao with good support when she was walking, especially at the foot arch, and were lightweight enough to avoid additional strain on her back. Although she still could not sit down or walk for long at that point, they made it much easier for her to move around.

In May 2019, she ordered 20 to 30 samples for family and friends. An aunt’s friend saw it and requested to buy a pair. A week later, she ordered eight more – one for everyone in her family.

“That is literally how it started,” laughed Mao.