Safety Shoe S2
Reference:
Safety shoe for vegans with a 200 joule toe cap made to EU standards. The shoe has thick upper material, a thick sole and a strong welded seam should last for years of normal use, or for a while on a building site.
Veganline.com/safety-boots-shoes - boots are available too, including an option with an armoured mid-sole that this shoe doesn't have.
pack ■ 1.60 kg, ↔ 23.0 cm, ⤢ 33.0 cm, ↕ 16.0 cm,
In the UK we can probably send heavier parcels for the same price by courier.
More info
Some EU safety standards cover strength, breathability, water resistance, slip resistance and ability to absorb shocks so these should be a good quality pair of shoes even if you don't need the safety steel toe cap. Laces are a cylindrical design that should stay tied, and the sports insole is loose-fitting so it can be taken out and washed or replaced, and it has a lattice of punched holes in it to encourage small flows of air around the inside of the shoe with each step you take. The lining is an absorbent, wicking material and has a padded lip round the top of the heel that should keep these onto narrower womens' feet as well as wider-heel mens' feet.
http://veganline.com/made-in-albania : employment and environmental standards.
The manufacturer makes its own claims about reducing discrimination at work, danger or unreasonable demands on staff, following local laws, and such-like as employers do. The claims have some plausibility because Albania is a country with a social security system, so that people are not quite as scared to leave a job as otherwise, families are smaller, and it's a country with employment laws. Without being expert, any of us can start on a page like veganline.com/made-in-albania and start digging. The link to social security in Albania allows you to compare things like pensions or unemployment pay with other countries.
The factory in Albania is owned and managed by the Italian brand-owner which sells from a warehouse in Italy. Their managers are able to see what happens on the shop floor in Albania and to plan for future investment and employment of staff. This is different to the way that fashion companies and chain-stores buy, with unpredictable ups and downs passed to a lead contractor that passes a lot of the work onto cheaper sub-contractors or not at the whim of fast fashion.
The manufacturer makes claims of energy efficiency and ability to recycle surplus plastic that are easier for people on the ground to see; a lot of the customers are in Italy, and it is easy for them to visit Albania. The solar panels on the roof of the warehouse can be checked just by looking on google maps' arial view. It's also easy to check that they don't use much air-freight. Cartons come with from Italy by road with TNT tracking.
Data sheet
| Material | 2mm vegan leather (microfibre) with a breathable plastic coating, Durable except for the coating |
| Size System | Euro sizes two thirds of a cm apart. English translations on the right of the size selector. |
| Size System Name | EU |
| Size System Gender | Unisex |
| Gender, fit | Unisex vegan shoes boots, vegan boots, belts sandals & slippers |
| Colour | Black-ish |
| Soft mid-sole | none |
| Footbed | Sports shaped insole, removable and washable, over a cellulose board. Nonleather |
| Toe Cap | 200 joule impact resistant toe cap - a standard called S2, part of EN ISO 20345:2011 |
| Fastening | 4 lace holes each side |
| Washing | Hand wash with soap and warm water. Soaking is OK. Consider the weight before machine washing - maybe wash in a pillow case. Instinct, risk & thought and obvious facts apply. |
| Drying | squash in a towel, then leave in a warm or windy place for several hours |
| Wear-out | Durable. The shine rubs-off the upper material in places but is easy to blacken. Then after miles or years, the sole wears thin enough to crack and is expensive to replace. |
| Compostable | no - but some Veganline.com shoes last a long time |
| polishing | spray wipe or scrub with oil furniture polish, wax or shoe polish to increase water resistance but reduce breathability |
| Pack | Surplus boot boxes are turned inside-out to look better. |
| Category | 187 |
| Brand | Veganline |
Colour: Black-ish
Size System: EU Unisex
Brand: Veganline
Upper Material: 2mm vegan leather (microfibre) with a breathable plastic coating, Durable except for the coating
Google Product Category:
Product country information
Social Security quick view
6.30 out of 10 on Human Rights Index (news: HRW ; Amnesty )
5.89 out of 10 on Democracy_Index / votes or "Hybrid Regime"
.658 units of CO2 per unit of electricity more
4.0% spent on Education
6.7% spent on Health
where the numbers come from: Veganline.com/info/Why-Made-In
Costs like social security, health and education reduce what's left to advertise a brand. You can draw your own brand, like a smiley face or a black spot or something if you want.