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

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/

http://3dprint.com/wp-content/upload...etz-newest.jpg

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

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

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

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

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?

Here is the latest promo video.

https://vimeo.com/101861066

For those that have been following Feetz, here is their GIGTANK presentation. Very interesting...
https://vimeo.com/103949690

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/

I wanna try a pair on!

I really hope this works. I have large feet and finding my size has always been a pain.

Good luck at SXSW.

My feet are too big to print my own lol

I actually have feet exactly a foot long, and an 11 inch print length :-)

Curious and excited! However, how is moisture retention being managed? Leather is naturally breathable but what about the material being used?