Business Opportunities Weblog

September 22, 2008 by Rich Whittle | 3 Comments

Associated Press:

In fall 2006, Monica Murphy of Old Greenwich and Becca Brown had everything going for them.

The respective Georgetown and Harvard University alumnae were in their last year of business school at Columbia University, with jobs lined up at Goldman Sachs upon graduation.

There was just one problem: Their stilettos kept sinking into grass and getting caught in subway grates. So the friends launched SoleMates High Heelers and never looked back.

SoleMates resemble upside-down golf tees and attach to the bottom of each heel, increasing its surface area and thus decreasing a woman’s chance of sinking, sticking and slipping on tricky terrain.

Their Web site launched July 4 and the plastic marvels are already sold in more than 10 boutiques across the country at $11.95 a pair. A “mini” style for skinny heels will debut within the next few weeks.

“My high school prom was the first time I thought about it,” Brown said at Murphy’s childhood home off Maple Avenue. “My heels were getting stuck in the ground when we went outside to take photos. It was pretty awkward, and I realized that it was this ongoing frustration.”

“We’ve already sold out three times,” said Fox. “People have ordered them for weddings and a lot of people from yacht clubs have come in and said they’re good for avoiding getting stuck in the grates in the dock.”

“We’re so happy,” said Brown, who hopes that someday SoleMates will come with every new pair of shoes.

Photo by SoleMates.

In Inventions | 3 Comments
Tags: Fashion, Women