2024 Rewind
Pause. Rewind. Play.
2024 was a leap year, and it sure has “leapt” by! Meteor showers, eclipses, and delightful solar flares of Northern lights delighted our skies, while on earth Artificial Intelligence finally went mainstream. The wars in Ukraine, the Middle East, Myanmar, and Sudan kept the world on edge, while national elections worldwide added to global political unease. Climate change meant more severe fire, hurricane and tornado seasons, including a “bomb-cyclone / atmospheric river” event (that’s a mouthful!) here in Oregon. I, for one, am glad for a little time to look back and exhale.
While the world was spinning by in 2024, our workshop here in Oregon remained a peaceful, busy place where sheepskin and colorful leathers flowed continuously through the skilled hands of our team. We welcomed five new elves to our team (Dakota, Moustafa, Ammar, Elijah, and Ryan) to learn the art of shoemaking and are currently planning retirement celebrations for two of our most tenured and hardworking elves: Jodi and Karen.
Chief People Officer Sarah and Product Magician Keita have helped take on more responsibility, co-managing with me and providing space I needed with my family this year. Next year in 2025, Softstar will celebrate 40 years of making feet happy.
Many of the events we enjoyed this past year have become annual traditions: summer picnics, creative employee playdays, employee lunches, and moccasin making parties. This past year saw some new events as well, including the first barefoot shoe convention and Tuesday “Strength and Tone” classes with Madelyn rocking the 80s after work.
In 2024, we began doing regular inventories, increased transparency for compensation and budgets, learned more about project management, and continued our sustainability mission as a B-Corp. We improved our help desk software, launched a speedier website, and designed two new shoe styles. Speaking of new styles - the Camino sandal and Chelsea boot have been keeping my feet delighted all year - I am so lucky I get to test prototype pairs!
The ability to work with our hands, as well as knowing we make people's feet happier and stronger, is very satisfying, and I am grateful to work at Softstar. Sometimes I like to think about the thousands of pairs of Softstars that are on the feet of our customers in different corners of the world - all concurrently walking, running, and carrying people through their days doing good things. It is a good feeling. Thank you for being part of our journey and indulging this "Pause. Rewind." Exhale. Time to press "Play" for 2025!
Trish has been an entrepreneur, marketer and maker ever since she crushed her first lemonade stand at age five. Growing up in rural Wisconsin, she spent many summers running barefoot with her sisters. These early memories later inspired her to build a brand which embraced the joy and freedom of childhood with the health and science of minimal footwear.
Trish relishes evolving the company to grow stronger and more competitive with each passing year. She is a frequent expert panelist for both e-commerce and entrepreneurship conferences. Trish enjoys spending time with her family, dogs and ducks on their property in Oregon and loves the proximity to both surf and snow. She has a background in Engineering Physics and an MBA from the University of Chicago.