First Birkenstock store in the USA

Birkenstock footwear has always been constructed with sustainable products. The Birkenstock company handpicks all of the resources and boldly states that it only utilizes resources from "countries with modern environmental standards".
The footbed is made from cork harvested in Portugal. Cork, the bark of the Oak tree, has been harvested since ancient times. It was used in Egypt, Greece and Rome cork for its buoyant characteristics, in buoys, fishnets and boats, and later to seal wine bottles.
The desire for cork has increased but machine harvest is nearly impossible, so highly skilled workers on small farms use special hand axes to harvest the bark. The Oak Tree re-grows its bark every nine to ten years.
The jute used in the footbed is naturally grown in Bangladesh from an annual woody plant. The fiber made from the stem plays is layered between the cork footbed and the Birkenstock's soles. Jute is one of the strongest fibers known to man and has been used for thousands of years to make ropes and rugs. The shoes could be held together using a toxic glue but Birkenstock decided to work with jute because of its friendly environmental qualities as well as its durability. The adhesive that keeps the jute in place is latex, chosen by Birkenstock because of its low environmental impact.
The latex used in Birkenstock shoes comes from Malaysia, but the Rubber Tree, latex's source point is not native to the hemisphere. In the 1890's as demand grew for the Rubber Tree, Britain, Malaysia's colonial ruler, transported the rubber tree to Malaysia from its native home of Brazil. The tree flourished in Malaysia and today there is more rubber tree cultivation in Southeast Asia than in its native land.
The rubber soles of the shoe are made of Polyurethane, the product of a pre-polymer being mixed with alcohol and water. The Birkenstock company is the first to admit that is a toxic and non-biodegradable substance. It is the only non-environmentally friendly product used in manufacturing, but Birkenstock's desire to change this is visible. A new non-toxic footbed is in the works.
M.J. Feet, in Seattle's University District, was the first Birkenstock store in the United States. For over 35 years, they have provided "green" footwear to Seattle and beyond.

Melanie Grimes founded Birkenstock's first retail store in the United States, M.J. Feet The Birkenstock Store. Beginning her career as Washington's "shoe lady," Grimes has been in the comfort shoe industry for 35 years and counting.

At the age of 19, Grimes first discovered the comfort of Birkenstock shoes while waiting tables at a health food restaurant. Tired, sore feet drove her to spend a week's wages on a pair of mustard-colored Zurichs. Other students became interested in the shoes, and soon after Grimes began ordering the shoes wholesale and selling them out of her closet while studying Naturopathic medicine in Washington.

In 1973, with a $2,000 loan from her parents, Grimes set up shop in the back of a health food store in Greenlake, Washington. Following her father's advice, 23-year-old Grimes negotiated a guarantee with distributor Margot Fraser (president and founder of Birkenstock Footprint Sandals, Inc.) that if the shoes did not sell they would be bought back. With this insurance she bought 78 pairs of shoes, took out a quarter page newspaper ad and bided her time. Sitting on an inner tube in a nearby lake, Grimes' customers would call to her from the shore when service was needed. Business steadily increased and in the following years she received her Bachelor's degree, met her husband and moved her Birkenstock business to a store in Seattle's University District.

Grimes' first store was named with the help of her friends. Likening Grimes' driving style to that of racecar driver A.J. Foyt, friends suggested M.J. Feet. Building on the initials, Grimes adopted "mercy" and "justice" (two of her business principles) to represent the store's abbreviation. Though the business has grown, the University District location still has its distinctly arched, curvilinear interior. After 35 years in business, Grimes welcomes three generations of customers to her store.

The store and Birkenstock shoes have become interwoven with Melanie Grimes' personal life history. Her husband Charles Grimes, wedded in a pair of sand suede Arizonas, runs the business alongside his wife. The Grimes' two sons also helped out in the retail stores after having spent most of their younger lives toddling around Birkenstock shoes.

Involved in several activities, the Grimes have become a part of the community. Charles sat on the Queen Anne Little League Board and is the current president of the University District Chamber of Commerce. Certified as a homeopathic practitioner, Melanie has lectured both nationally and abroad, written, edited and published several homeopathic books and journals and established Alethea Book Company (publishing books on homeopathy and related fields).
The University District store is located at 4334 University Way
N.E. and can be contacted at (206) 632-5353.

For product information, visit M.J. Feet's web site at www.thebirkenstockstore.com.