Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Teva Naot (Hebrew: טבע נאות‎) is an Israeli shoe and sandal manufacturer based at Kibbutz Neot Mordechai.Naot, which opened in 1942, started out as a small kibbutz factory producing work boots. Currently, it employs 160 workers and designs a new line of footwear every year to keep up with global fashion trends. Naot's products include a variety of shoes and sandals for men, women and children with special insoles that conform to the shape of the wearer's foot.
In 1988, shoe manufacturing in Israel suffered from the glut of expensive imports from the Far East. Naot Mordechai considered shutting down its shoe factory. The economic situation of the kibbutz was so serious that it became part of a study of failing companies at the economics department of Tel Aviv University. Ami Bar-Nahor was assigned to be a consultant for Naot Mordechai as part of a class exercise. He came up with the idea of modernizing both the product and production to attract the new health-conscious shoe consumer. "I aimed at a sort of Israelization of Birkenstock,” said Naor, referring to the veteran German company that makes clogs and sandals. Bar-Nahor spent four years at Naot Mordechai. Traditional biblical sandals had inflexible soles. Naot offered a flexible “footpad” of cork, natural rubber or leather that supported the heel. Adjustable leather straps crisscrossed and took into consideration feet that might swell in the heat.

Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Naot Boots

Naot Boots