Lila Stewart and her husband Jeremy own Hari Mari – Photo by SES

The husband and wife owners of sandal company Hari Mari know that it is unusual to start a brand of flip flops in Dallas, Texas.

Before founding the brand, Jeremy and Lila Stewart spent three years in Indonesia. Jeremy worked as a political adviser there, and Lila helped children in the impoverished orphanage near Jakarta.

When they got home, after being overwhelmed by the sea of ​​black and brown flip flops seen on the market, they chose to do something new and started their own company.

Based on their time in Indonesia, Hari Mari added Indonesian and Latin elements to the brand name, and continued to help children by donating 1% of sales to help children fight cancer.

Lila told us at Surf Expo that the biggest difference of the brand is the colors it uses to help Hari Mari stand out on the sandal wall. Other signs are the use of leather, patented toe caps to provide extra comfort, and a quality lifestyle, rather than surfing and beaching. Prices range from US$55 to US$120.

When the brand was launched in 2012, they deliberately avoided California because there were already too many California brands on the market.

"We focused on Texas, the Southeast, the Northeast, and the Mid-Atlantic, and decided to return to California later," Lila said. "We want to be different from the beginning."

The strategy seems to be working. Hari Mari now has 1,000 stores, including major customers such as Neiman Marcus, Stitch Fix, Nordstrom and West Marine, as well as a wide range of professional customers, including boutiques and resort shops for men and women in Four Seasons and The Ritz-Carlton. Next year, Urban Outfitters and outdoor retailer Orvis will also take over the brand.

Although they focus on establishing wholesale operations elsewhere, California has become the company's second largest state in terms of e-commerce sales.

Hari Mari men's style at the Surf Expo

Lila said that some California surfing accounts are now placing orders, including Hansen Surfboards, South Coast Surf Shop and Sun Diego.

Although the company is headquartered in Dallas, it has a lot of design and product help from California, including several former Sanuk employees.

The brand continues to expand its product line to include slippers, sandals, running shoes, slippers and boots.

At present, due to the cooperation with the high-end menswear brand Peter Millar, the menswear business is larger than the womenswear business. Next year, women's clothing may account for most of sales.

Lila and Jeremy have conducted several rounds of financing, but still own most of the company's shares. In terms of division of labor, Lila is responsible for wholesale sales and public relations, while Jeremy is responsible for marketing and e-commerce.

"We work 7 days a week," Lila said. "Our children are the footwear models of our children's products. Jeremy and I run different aspects of the business. We are very yin and yang, because my weakness is his strength, and vice versa. So this is a good one. Partnerships."

Hari Mari Women's Style

Last year, COVID initially destroyed Hari Mari's wholesale business, but fortunately, people working from home started wearing a lot of flip-flops, so e-commerce sales soared. Although there are also inventory challenges, especially some of its product lines are manufactured in China, Hari Mari has moved its leather production to Mexico before the COVID, so given the supply chain issues in Asia, the brand is in a better position than many brands .

Hari Mari managed to achieve growth in 2020, but due to the challenge of COVID, its annual growth rate did not reach 70% of its habit. However, with the expansion of products and the continued development of wholesale and e-commerce, the brand is expected to usher in an important year in 2021.

"The exciting thing is that our customers have been asking us more, and it's been a while," Lila said. "So, compared to sandals and flip-flops, we are transforming into more footwear brands. This will be an exciting year."

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