Second running shoe from Kenyan footwear brand
09/04/2019
Enda was founded in 2015 by entrepreneurs Nava Osembo-Ombati and Weldon Kennedy. Their belief was that Kenya’s reputation as the home of many world-class runners ought to mean it can also produce world-class running shoes. Its first product, the Iten, has received positive reviews since its release, with the brand recently being endorsed by Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o.
The brand has said its new product, the Lapatet, is a daily running shoe rather than one for competition, and so comfort and support were the priority when designing it. It has a full rubber outsole that is intended to offer grip across a range of surfaces as well as increased durability.
Other features include a high-rebound EVA foam under the midfoot and forefoot, while under the heel and toecap there is a high-abrasion EVA foam. This contrast aims to promote a healthy running gait and encourage a midfoot strike. Encouraging this is the reasoning behind the six millimetre drop from heel to toe as well. The Lapatet is also very lightweight.
As with the Iten, Enda’s latest offering features several design nods to its Kenyan heritage, including eyelets in the colours of the country’s flag and a sole design that pays tribute to the Great Rift Valley, from where many of Kenya’s best runners originate. The word ‘Harambee’, an official motto of Kenya meaning “all pull together” in Swahili, is also written on the side of the shoe.
The brand has spent more than 18 months perfecting the design of the Lapatet, which has included having prototypes road-tested by its partner athletes in Kenya. Should it raise the $80,000 in funding that it is targeting, Enda hopes to begin production of this model in October. It will be assembled in Kenya, although the components will come from outside the country.
It will release the Lapatete in one, two or three colours, depending on the total amount of funding raised. At the time of writing on April 9, the crowdfunding campaign had raised more than $58,000 from 429 backers. It ends on April 25.
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