VIBAe is a “big small” company. Our mission and values are big, but our management team is a tight-knit group of five friends. The VIBAe team consists of Tammy and Ludo from Malibu and Minna, Kalle and Hannu from Finland. 

Yes, I know what you´re thinking… scorching hot Malibu and freezing cold Finland? Interesting opposites, they must complement each other? Well, we do! Tammy and Ludo have been in the footwear industry since 1997. Kalle and Minna are serial entrepreneurs, and Hannu has an extensive career in international business.

The idea of VIBAe was born in a camper van trip across Finland. We hiked the tallest mountain, Saana, amidst a snow blizzard, we mountaineered glaciers bordering Norway, rowed boats into Sweden, and discovered the many rural riverside saunas along the way. The sauna was always followed by an icy cold plunge into the river. Hot and cold, remember? 🙂

Ludo is an industrial designer with tons of experience. He is known as the “shoe dog” meaning the shoes he wears on his feet are his way of connecting with humanity. As the first sketches of VIBAe were drawn, we knew he was onto something. Our friends shared this belief. They were willing to invest their money in us, so we had to give it a go!

A start-up would mean a lot of work, but what could go wrong whilst working with friends and good vibes? We all shared the same values and dreams and were eager to create a new standard of ecological, ergonomic, and comfortable footwear, ethically made by artisans. VIBAe means vibe in the Finnish language, and the running joke is that the little e in VIBAe stands for “FCKN” everything that starts with an e! Check out the writing on our t-shirts and other apparel if you dare!

We then headed to Portugal – a country renowned internationally in footwear manufacturing. We were inspired by the stunning quality and unique designs we saw there! So, with this hot passion and the occasional cold plunges all startup entrepreneurs are familiar with (sometimes things do go wrong after all, being the humans that we are), we set to develop the shoes that would blow your socks off! 

The VIBAe shoes would be hand made in Portugal by a third-generation, family-run factory. The first pairs of VIBAe shoes were sold in the summer of 2020. Fast forward a couple of years and we’re proud to say that we’ve sold VIBAe shoes to over 50 000 people through our stores and online.

We can hardly believe our shoes are walking the earth in over 150 hot and cold countries!