Iconic Canadian retailer Roots is returning to the footwear business on which it was founded nearly 40 years ago by launching a boot with the same rubber sole as that worn by troops in Afghanistan.
“We feel it’s the finest sole we’ve ever had,” said Roots co-founder Michael Budman. “This is something we have big plans for.”
Roots has an exclusive contract with Montreal-area company Soucy Baron Inc. to use the same rubber material it produces for Canadian military boots. Roots will make the new boots at its leather factory in Toronto.
“We think we have something nobody else has on the commercial market,” Budman said of the new boots that will be available in stores across Canada later this month.
Budman said the sole is durable, won’t crack in extreme temperatures and will keep people from slipping on ice.
The special soles can be found in two of the various footwear styles that Roots will unveil this fall: its new “Tuffer” brand for both men and women; and its sheepskin boots, which are for women only. The price of the Tuffer boot is $218, while the sheepskin boots will sell for $288.
This fall will be the first time in four years that Roots will sell its own footwear in stores, Budman said.
He said the company’s decision is a result of customer demand and changes in technology that has made it “more viable” to compete in the footwear business again.
Roots started as a shoe company in 1973 after opening its first store on Toronto’s Yonge Street. Budman said Roots stopped making footwear a few years ago, due in part to rising manufacturing costs, and focused instead on its line of clothing and leather bags.
