Earth Conscious Shoes

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Overview

Chenna Baree are flexible, fun, earth conscious shoes, made to be worn at work, at home and at play. They are evolved from Kung Fu training shoes worn by Shaolin monks. They are super fun, super flexible, super practical, ethically made and and earth friendly.

Chenna Baree was successfully funded on Kickstarter in June of 2017. Since then we have been receiving great feedback!

Story

Chenna Baree

Earth Conscious Shoes for Vibrant Living

I am an orthopedic shoemaker. I’ve spent my life hand making shoes and helping people with serious foot and ankle conditions. One thing I have learned is that part of the recipe for great foot health is getting out there and moving. I designed Chenna Baree shoes with this aim in mind.

I’ve been practicing Tai Chi since I was 14 years old. No other shoe has met my criteria for flexibility and connection to the ground as well as these shoes. The feedback from others has been enthusiastic. On top of that, the use of sustainable, biodegradable materials matters to me.

Chenna Baree has no gimmicks. It is an honest simple shoe improving upon traditional farming and Kung Fu shoes that have been made for over 80 years without changes. It’s a testimony to the idea that foot freedom is part of good foot health. That is why I believe we can build a brand which has the potential to withstand the test of time.

*Note cotton duck is a type of canvas, not an animal product. These shoes are vegan.

Working with the right people

I spent two years studying Chinese in order to make this possible. I knew that in order to find an authentic factory I would have to go to China and where I was going would be off the beaten path. This project would not have been possible without the help of my language partner and good friend Jun Jun and her husband Qin Feng. With their very kind support I was driven into rural China where you don’t see foreigners. I visited two factories that make the old style shoes that inspired Chenna Baree. The factory that I have chosen to work with forms a community of about sixty people, most of whom live in the nearby village. It forms a community of about sixty people, most of whom live in the nearby village. My two main contacts there, Nan Nan and Echo, both speak passable English. Working with them, as well as with the factory owner Eric has been a wonderful and unique human experience. I am the first Canadian to ever visit their factory, my two sisters and I got a very warm welcome indeed. There were lots of smiles and laughs. Most people have no idea what this might be like. For those of you who are interested, here are a few impressions for you.

Extensive testing in purple

There is only one way to know if you have a winner. That’s to put it to the test. We produced an initial order of Chenna Baree in Purple. Why purple? I was as perplexed as other people, but purple won by a popular public poll. I am so glad we did this test run, because Version 2 has some important changes and quality improvements. And that’s what testing is all about.

And here they are

Red, Blue, Olive, Grey, Purple

US Women’s 5 to Men’s 13


Beautiful, classic red linen canvas.


Another classic. Beautiful blue linen canvas


Olive Green Slightly conservative but where can you find this shoe?


Grey. All round conservative gorgeous linen canvas


Chenna Baree’s flagship- the now famous Purple Shoe!

Orange and Lime?

We hope to bring in more colors. Register here if you are interested, and we’ll let you know when we are ready to go to production.

Become a part of it

We want to build an ethical earth conscious brand of footwear for active living. By doing so we not only provide great employment, but we reduce vast quantities of synthetics from entering the landfill.

Chenna Baree is about the marriage of beauty, function and sustainability. We want to deliver to you a unique, highly functional shoe which will be made for many years to come. That means, you will always want to have a pair in your active collection.

Become part of our community and we’ll keep you up to date.

Contact us

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Shipping

We offer discounted shipping anywhere in North America for a flat rate of $10.00 no matter how many items you purchase. In Canada we ship expedited post. In the USA we ship small parcel air mail. Note: Small parcel airmail to the US does not provide tracking information.

For more info, please Contact us

Returns and Exchanges

Our number one priority is to have happy customers. If you are unhappy with your purchase for any reason, let us know by emailing us at info@Chennabaree.com.

You may return your item within 3 months of purchasing for a full refund. If you wish to exchange your purchase, let us know by emailing us at info@Chennabaree.com .

You may return the item for an exchange within 3 months of the date of purchase. We will issue you a partial refund to cover shipping costs.

Privacy Policy

Chenna Baree will operate according to well established standards with respect to the handling of your personal and financial information. We do not share, distribute or sell your personal information. We do not store financial information. In order to take payments, we integrate with third party agencies that are set up to store and manage financial information. It is your responsibility to read their privacy policies and terms of service.