Slippers for hipsters: Mahabis

I stumbled on these Mahibis slippers via a Facebook ad of all things. But I think they’re really cool.

After being subjected to three ‘ageing raver’ DJ types having a serious discussion about slippers a while ago, I said ‘someone needs to hurry up and exploit this market’. I was thinking along the lines of Stussy, Junya or Nike even, the brands that people of my generation grew up with and respect, because we want comfy slippers, but we also still love our credible brands and aren’t ready for Bhs.

While we wait for Stussy et al, in stepped Mahabis. Just launched this summer, these indoor-outdoor slippers look like a hybrid of old school Keds, felt Birkenstocks and those neoprene sock shoes you wear on the beach. They’re extremely practical, featuring a felt upper (made in Poland) and a wool-mix lining. The collapsible neoprene heel gets them on and off quickly, and the best bit is the customisable element – a removable, Italian-made rubber sole (choose your colour). Developed through 3D printing, this flexible sole protects them if you need to pop outside. I can see them being especially useful for travel, aren’t they the perfect airline and hotel slipper?

Having only launched a few months ago, Mahabis has been embraced by the likes of Hypebeast, and has an engaging social media strategy. I think it has the potential to be massive.

Mahabis are available at Mahabis.com.

(Images: Mahibis, Hypebeast)