Feetz - 3D Printed Shoes coming this Christmas - Interview with CEO Lucy Beard

[Eddie]

When I was in NY this past April, I had the opportunity to talk with Lucy Beard, the CEO of a company called Feetz. They are a startup looking to 3D print customized shoes. At first the idea seemed a bit unrealistic to me, but after talking with Beard, I get the sense that it is very feasible, and that Beard really knows what she is doing. The Feetz shoes will begin shipping by Christmas and they currently have a beta program setup for those interested in trying out some of these shoes. Read more from the interview I had with Beard, and learn how to sign up for the free Beta at: http://3dprint.com/4676/feetz-sizeme-3d-printed-shoes/

[awerby]

Are these shoes as rigid as they look? If so, they'd be amazingly uncomfortable to wear, like boxes for the feet.

[LucyFeetz]

Hi Awerby - Lucy from Feetz here. We are definitely NOT making hard plastic shoes. We are making shoes that are flexible and wearable. Tekzilla did a nice video at Maker Faire bending the shoes that might give you a bit of an idea. Watch at 1:10 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUBtgbCCqdY

[JamesTuthill]

These look amazing Lucy. Can't wait to see how this goes. I'm signing up for Beta now.

[Feign]

I signed up for the beta back in May. My fiance can't wear normal shoes, so this is a huge opportunity.

[awerby]

I guess you found some flexible filament to print those in; that's great. I like the idea of custom shaped shoes from photos of a customer's feet, but am wondering how that's going to work. Will they have to submit different views, top and side, with rulers in the shots for calibration?

[Eddie]

Here is the latest promo video.

[Eddie]

For those that have been following Feetz, here is their GIGTANK presentation. Very interesting...

[Brian_Krassenstein]

Lucy Beard, the founder and CEO of Feetz, has long been inspired on her quest to start up the perfect company offering custom shoes fitted to each individual customer -- and today she's told 3DPrint.com of a successful round of seed funding to get Feetz off the ground. Led by Khosla Ventures, the seed funding raised $1.25 million for Feetz, with JumpFund participating and Uli Beck, Reebok's former CEO, involved and joining the Board of Directors at Feetz. The custom shoe designs will start with a smartphone app that allows individuals to size their feet through a simple scanning process, with the goal being to take that data and turn it into actual shoes on the customers' doorsteps within a week's time. This Saturday, Feetz will be at SXSW as a finalist in the Accelerator Event at the Hilton Hotel, Salon J. Find out more about the latest in Feetz in the full article: http://3dprint.com/50734/feetz-3d-printed-shoes/

[raysspl]

I wanna try a pair on!