Walk like a Masai

SYDNEY: One stand at the upcoming Australian Shoe Fair (ASF) – scheduled from February 15 to 17 at Sydney Exhibition Centre – has a mission.

Apart from the more obvious goal of boosting its brand presence, the first time exhibitor at ASF believes everyone would be happier if they walked like the Masai of East Africa.

MBT (Masai Barefoot Technology) is an idea that first took root in the 1990s, when Swiss engineer Karl Müller realised that shoes and backache were unknown to Masai tribesmen. By walking barefoot on the soft, uneven ground of their homeland, they activated muscles that typically atrophy on hard, even surfaces in conventional shoes.

First brought to Australia two years ago by Sue Miller, director of parent company Masai Walking, MBT Footwear – which currently boasts around 45 stockists across the country -- hoped to boost its wholesale business at ASF, confirmed MBT Footwear general manager Simon Cron.

All MBT stockists received initial training -- as well as regular three-monthly updates -- on the science behind the footwear, he confirmed.

MBT is designed to distribute the load of the body evenly across the whole foot, preventing ailments caused by the concentration of pressure on individual points. The shoes allow the body to react to instability with intuitive compensatory movements, providing neglected muscles with effective exercise.

Retailing for $339 to $369, the 24-piece MBT range promises to benefit wearers in a number of ways including; increased abdominal muscle activity, improved posture and gait, a nine per cent increase in buttock muscle activity, a 19 per cent reduction in hip stress, rear thigh muscle activity, and knee stress and an 18 per cent increase in lower leg muscle activity.

As well as boosting its wholesale business through ASF, it is understood Masai Walking harbours plans to roll out a suite of MBT concept stores across Australia, kicking off with a Chatswood (NSW) outlet scheduled to open in March.