Small business Q&A
Gillian Boucher (below right), sustainability manager at footwear firm Orba, tells Aimee Shaw how the business runs operations remotely in Indonesia from the Ka¯piti Coast
What does your business do?
Orba is a startup, starting off as an eco-footwear company. Footwear is the beginning but it is not going to be the end. We’re experimenting with what is considered unusual materials for the footwear industry; plantbased, bio-degradable and highly renewable. We’ve launched our Orba Ghost casual sneaker in September of last year and our goal was to remove all plastics and synthetics from the shoes and be challenged by making shoes out of plant-based and biodegradable materials.
What was the motivation to start?
Orba was birthed at the beginning of lockdown. One of our founders, Kāpiti-based Greg Howard, was in Indonesia working with the other founder, Marshall Westlake. Marshall has been involved in the Indonesian footwear industry since the early nineties — Indonesia is the world’s sixth-largest footwear producer — and their goal was to make the most sustainable shoe they could; based on minimising waste. Waste has been a hot topic all over the world for years, but the apparel and footwear industry has a lot to answer for when it comes to waste and the materials used. Marshall, when he moved to Indonesia in 1991, said a lot of banana leaf packaging was used and it would be tossed in the yard and wouldn’t be there long. But plastic came along and the waste in Java now is overwhelming and he didn’t want to continue to be part of it. Orba started with an aspirational goal but making it a reality has been challenging.
What about the last six months?
The biggest challenge we have had is the availability of alternative materials for us to use. We’re making a lot of environmental claims by using plant-based materials so a lot of my job has been about doing research on materials and plantbased fibres that we’re using to make our eco-friendly materials. Having only launched in September, and as a small team, receiving massive positive customer feedback, not only about the concept of the shoes but their comfort levels and durability has been extremely pleasing.
We’ve picked up a couple of awards over the last six months which is really awesome; we won the sustainable product and design category at the Design Institute of New Zealand Best Design Awards and were a winner in the sustainability category at the Global Footwear Awards. We also achieved B-Corp certification this past December only four months after launch.
How big is the team?
There’s five of us here in New Zealand, and three based in Indonesia, and that’s full-time employees. We’re a small startup and New Zealand is a test market for us, and as we expand into new international markets our team will definitely grow.
Has the pandemic impacted Orba?
I can’t say it has had major negative impacts on the business. Our launch date was later than expected due to freight delays.
Orba actually had a bunch of people with a bunch of work during that time; it gave five people in New Zealand full-time jobs during the pandemic and the ability to work from home on a startup.
Where do you see the business in five to 10 years?
We only have white sneakers on sale at the moment so we’re working on launching some beautiful colours that address negative environmental impacts in the industry. We’re aiming to become a leader in the industry that can demonstrate that you don’t need to use polluting, petroleumbased plastics and synthetics in clothing and footwear to have a great product.
When dying our shoes — this has a huge negative impact to water pollution and water scarcity issues, so we use completely plant-based natural dyes in Indonesia, coming from local plant leaves and different types of bark to make these gorgeous natural hues. We hope to bring those to the market eventually and also to continue to improve rates of biodegradability. We’re always doing R&D in this area.
We want to continually improve our manufacturing practices and supply chain and the materials we work with.
What is the focus right now?
The current focus is realising a large line of footwear by getting colours out into the market. We’re really limited by only having a white shoe so that is our biggest focus right now. We’ve been really happy with our performance and sales in the New Zealand market.
Shortly we’ll be heading over to Europe to set up a European team in anticipation of a launch there later this year and we’re also slowly gathering a group of people for a team in America too. Launching a range of colours and international expansion are the main focuses.
What advice do you give to others eager to start a business?
Look to instil sustainable business practices from the beginning — be a business for good; not just a business based for profit, but a business that actually creates a positive impact and that strives to do good in the communities that it works in.