How to succeed in crowdfunding, according to the maker of the world’s most crowdfunded shoe

For most people, work is the last thing they want to think about while on vacation. For Alberto Espinos, however, a trip to Thailand with some friends in 2016 generated a business idea that flipped his career upside down. After hiking hundreds of hours carrying heavy backpacks, he and his friends realized each one of them had brought at least four types of shoes for different purposes. Then came the lightbulb moment: what if one could produce a shoe versatile enough to be the only one a traveler would carry?

Despite his lack of previous experience in the footwear industry, Espinos took it upon himself to develop Monsoon, an all-terrain sneaker combining the benefits of an aqua shoe, the comfort of walking shoes, the outsole of hiking shoes, and the look of a daily piece. After two years of research and development, his company, Tropicfeel, debuted on Kickstarter looking to bring Monsoon to the market. It worked beautifully: the idea attracted nearly 40,000 backers, raising over 2 million US dollars and giving Monsoon the title of world’s most crowdfunded shoe. It now retails for 89 euros (approximately 98 US dollars) on Tropicfeel’s website, which ships worldwide.