Alumnus FT-MBA creates sustainable shoe insole start-up

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David Even (FT-MBA 45) created the start-up to bring customers greater comfort and a sustainable solution for the shoe industry.

The FT-MBA program was a transformative experience for David. After living in many cities in Europe and North America, he found his purpose at SDA Bocconi.

ā€œThe MBA helped me in terms of getting to the next level in life where I wanted to be, and meeting new people, new mentors, new professors,ā€ he says.

It was there that he learned about sustainable business and materials. After a project with a classmate making fibers from upcycled Posidonia, a seagrass, learning about closed-loop circular economy in class and some post-MBA experience for a start-up, he had the foundation for his own business.

David founded Primal Soles about a year ago. It was an idea that came to him while on vacation in Greece.

Primal Soles is the worldā€™s first 100% recyclable shoe insoles made from natural Mediterranean cork. He wanted to create something that not only provided comfort but that was also sustainable, circular and natural, leaving a minimal footprint.

David says he was inspired by Nikeā€™s Founder, Phil Knight, and Patagoniaā€™s, Yvon Chouinard, when creating his start-up. After a crowdfunding campaign, which was strongly supported by his SDA Bocconi classmates, Primal Soles was out in the world.

One of the founding principles, David says, was to ā€œleave a legacy, contributing to a world that will move around with more comfort while not leaving the planet in a worse state, actively pursuing to leave it in a better state.ā€



SDA Bocconi School of Management

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