We have always moved against the tide – ahead of the curve – challenging and breaking the boundaries with innovation and invention; leading the way. The following are a few photos from our beginnings as one of the very first successful joint ventures with the Chinese.




GREAT HALL OF THE PEOPLE - Beijing, Winter 1981-2

• Front row, American holding his hands: Phil Knight
• Next American, front row, wearing the suit he slept in: Richard C. Holbrooke, former Undersecretary of State for Henry Kissinger; former US Ambassador to UN; etc
• Between Knight and Holbrooke: Wan Li (deceased) – at the time the fifth most powerful person in China
• Behind and between Wan Li and Richard Holbrooke: My father, Howard Shaffer (The scruffy beard was his team's commitment to not shave until they shipped their first container of shoes from China.)
• Behind and between Wan Li and Phil Knight:  David Chang (deceased), VP of Nike, the person who got Nike into China, Good friend of my father, Princeton graduate, Married a white woman when interracial marriage was still illegal in his state.

APACHE - Guang Dong Province, 1989
The building of Apache, our fourth factory in China.  Asia still uses bamboo for scaffolding, even in modern metropolises like HK. 

Dear Friends, Family and Otabo Customers, 

The Wall Street Journal recently ran an article on the dying infrastructure of the shoe industry in the United States – U.S. Shoe Factory Finds Supplies Are Achilles' Heel. Mr. Tim Aeppel, the journalist who wrote the report, interviewed Otabo Founder and President Howard Shaffer and spent a full day at our last factory bay in South Florida to watch us pack out for our move back to China. 

As you’ll read in The WSJ report, Otabo, like other American shoemakers, had been facing the difficulties of an almost non-existent industry. The negative tone of the interview (in regards to the failing footwear industry in the USA), has led some people to believe that we are closing up shop. This is not the case. We have simply moved. 

And we have moved with good reason – our business is growing, and we could not continue to affordably produce a quality product here in the United States.  Manufacturing in the US is increasingly expensive, and it is also more and more difficult to find skilled labor and high-grade materials.  We gave our US production a good run (it’s been over ten years since we first left China) and Otabo alone cannot save the shoe industry in America.   

For those of you who have visited our US factory, and maybe even watched your shoes in production, I am sure you can appreciate how much work and equipment it takes to provide the service and product that we do. Moving over 30,000 square feet of work space was not an easy task, but our new factory setup is finally complete, and designed to not only be more efficient, but to also introduce a greater variety of shoemaking techniques.  In addition to faster deliveries (we’ll be down to three weeks lead time before the end of the year!), we will be offering you more of the styles that you are asking for. 

So while we can no longer sustain a shoe factory in the States, we will continue to have a strong presence here in the US, and strive to influence the footwear industry for the better – developing innovative shoemaking techniques; reintroducing time-tested, traditional shoemaking techniques that modern industry has given up in favor of cheaper methods; and returning footwear to its roots as a service-oriented, highly individualized product. 

Now that I’ve addressed any confusion on The WSJ article, I would like to welcome you to Otabo’s blog.  This blog will be means for us to keep everyone updated on happenings with our company and to introduce you to the people, partners, projects and research that motivate and inspire us. 

So please subscribe and check in with us from time to time to learn about everything from new technologies we’re testing out, to tips from PGA pros on how to improve your game. We’d also love to hear your feedback and thoughts on how to better educate and service you on custom footwear. 


Sincerely,  
        
Sabrina Shaffer
Otabo Inc.  

 
Otabo at Tao Beach, Las Vegas
From left to right: Me and Otabo Designer Elizabeth Roque, who also happens to be one of my best friends; Otabo custom trainer, ostrich golf spectators, oxfords and loafer from our cabana display; award-winning, former Nike Design Director Christopher Bevans and the beginnings of his namesake footwear collection developed by Otabo.