Natalie Kathleen founded Jibs in 2015 after embarking on a journey to blend her passion for shoes with a love of travel, adventure and life. Essentially, she wanted to make a shoe that could keep up, that wouldn’t slow her down, that could take her from the office, to an impromptu bike ride, to drinks with her friends. After years of globetrotting and seeking out those big memory-making moments, Natalie wanted to design a shoe for epic travels as well as the little everyday adventures called life. She made her way to Três Coroas, Brazil to a friend’s family factory, and what resulted was Jibs, a footwear collection with recycled soles, a flexible slip-on design and perforated biodegradable leather that fits seamlessly on every foot and features multiple colors and styles for everyone from outdoor enthusiasts to the street style icons.
We Believe In Putting Your Best Foot Forward.
We Believe In Stepping Into The Good.
We Believe That Life is a Journey.
We Believe in the Beauty of the Individual.
- Natalie, Jibs Founder
Helpful FAQs
In short: we will cover all exchange costs to ensure you find the perfect Jibs fit!
Long story, not short: you'll soon find out that Jibs have a super unique snug at first feeling which allows the diamond perforations to quickly (from 20 minutes to a couple hours) do their magic to expand exactly where your unique feet shapes need them!
Example, this could be for your extra long left big toe, or that (don't fret, many of us have them) awkward bunion on the joint base of your right foot, or the extra length on the Slims even when you really don't think they are big enough... aka a touch of patience during first fitting goes a long way. Once you find your perfect Jibs fit you'll soon see what all this addicted to Jibs fuss is about :)
Plus - this is where the Jibs-erella Fit Guarantee comes in handy! As your faithful, back door is always open option, that should our Concierge Team (go Kate go!) try all their tricks in the books to search for your perfect fit... and boy we cannot succeed for any reason, we'll honor a full refund to your original purchase - even if you test strolled around the block and have bubble gum stuck in the treads ;)
So - go forth - give your best go with first size selections while referencing our Jibs Fit Guide and the only surprise in receipt of your order should be "how did I live without Jibs before?".
To top off our transparency, here's a quick snippet to our Shipping options as well:
USA (Continental)
FREE USPS, or $25 Rush Courier
FREE Exchanges + Returns
USA (Non-Continental)
$25 USPS, or $40 Express Courier
Customer pays shipping for Exchanges + Returns
Canada*
$30 Canada Post, or $50 Express Courier
Customer pays shipping for Exchanges + Returns
International*
$40 Postal, or $50 Express Courier
Customer pays shipping for Exchanges + Returns
See here for full Returns + Exchanges Policy
* The asterisk denotes just now much how we wish we could have better rates for all our jet-setting Jibs-Lifers.... please know we are growing everyday with the thanks of you all and soon enough we may have distribution in your country, or the shipping world may find ways to reduce transport costs! Until then, we'll continue to offer our per-order bulk rates at just below cost and thank you for your understanding.
Our shoes are handmade by footwear specialists in Brazil who have a legacy of craft and use a bio/eco process with earth friendly chemicals, less water usage and biodegradable features - all tested and certified in Spain. Our leather is up to 98% biodegradable, where typical leather is 30% biodegradable! That’s pretty, pretty cool.
And for some extra behind-the-scenes fine detail… to obtain the ideal softness meets durability, meets just-enough consistent stretchiness, we use genuine Brazilian leather (byproduct of the meat industry) which is then treated with a special non-toxic blend of chemicals to relax the leather and allow it to biodegrade quickly when disposed of after use, creating less overall long term waste on the earth. During this process we also ensure a great reduction in total water usage compared to traditional chrome leather tanning.
As a result, and as per in depth testing with RBT chemical industry, 80% of the leather will degrade into the earth in 6 months. And, in two years, 98% of the material will be degraded into the earth. This is within any disposal environment, not necessary to be a specific commercial composting facility.
We are super super proud that our tannery is a member of the Leather Working Group: https://www.leatherworkinggroup.com/ (LWG) a not-for-profit organization responsible for the world's leading environmental certification for the leather manufacturing industry. The LWG is also 1 of 6 sustainable certified organizations recognized by Zappos Goods for Goods: https://www.zappos.com/about/zappos-for-good program we are actively involved in.
As you may tell, we are super excited to be utilizing this material (which by the way is bespoke to Jibs to match our exact non-lined upper shoe fitting requirements) and we are currently reviewing new materials that are low impact on the planet with equal high impact on enjoyment. Aka if you have any other suggestions to types of materials you already love or wish to see more of please do let us know and I'll patch you over to our development team!
Your Jibs are designed to work hard and keep up with you throughout your day.
From office to gym and gym to dinner they will need a little TLC from time to time.
Here is how:
The leather upper: To maintain that “just out of the box” glow, take a damp cloth and wipe it over your Jibs from time to time. You can add a drop of dish soap to any stubborn stains and rub and remove with the cloth.
The recycled PVC or Therma Rubber outer soles: For best results take an old toothbrush and some dish soap and scrub out any markings or dirt. Alternatively, Magic Eraser has been known to put the sparkle back in your soles!
The cork Insole (Jibs purchased after May 2020): Due to the natural elements in our latest cork topped insole (aka breathable, flexible and super low impact) we suggest you treat the cleaning of this with hand touch, hand wash with soft dish or clothes soap and then leave it to air dry afterwards.
The cloth Insole (Jibs purchased before May 2020): This is fully washable so you can throw it in the machine and leave it to air dry afterwards. Do not put in machine dryer as this may cause melting or shrinking.
Jibs and Water
Jibs love to splash in puddles and dance in the rain as much as the next shoe, however, like all leather, they are water resistant but not fully waterproof. This means that rain from a light shower will not penetrate your shoes and if immediately left out to dry, they will not be damaged.
Submerging your Jibs in muddy puddles on city streets or diving off the boat into the blue ocean can be appealing but full recovery for your Jibs cannot be guaranteed. They are made from a soft, permeable leather which won’t hold its shape, texture or smell, when submerged in water.
We like to use color rich pigments when dying our leather and refrain from using harsh chemicals. For this reason, the color from your dark colored (black, red, blue in particular) leathers may bleed slightly if your Jibs become wet.
Summering and Wintering
True fact: authentic leather remains neutral regardless of the temperature, and does not retain sweat or odor, allowing our perforated leather shoes to be worn barefoot, to improve with age and be some of the least stinkiest shoes on this planet!
This perfect fit will likely start with a very snug feeling when you first slide Jibs on your feet. They will then stretch out within minutes to hours for a glove like comfort. You can anticipate your Jibs to stretch up to half a size between an hour to a day of strolling the streets or beaches.
Some say, like skinny jeans, if they are super snug at first, (but not painful) they then relax to a perfect glove-like fit. If they are too loose to begin with, they may then stretch and slip off your feet.
Curious for half sizes? If you have a very narrow foot, go for the size smaller (ex: size 7.5 go for 7). If you have a normal to wide foot then move up a size (ex: size 7.5 go for 8).
*Yes... exception to the rule we do offer a Men's size 10.5 as this is a very popular size and in US shoe sizing there is a large gap between a Men's size 10 and size 11 #FactOfTheDay ;)
If your original Jibs often ended up stretched out and super loose, then - good news - our new biodegradable, less chemically processed, leather upper will arrive similarly soft to touch yet also retains its shape so your Jibs fit stronger for longer.
For Slim style you’ll 99% fit the same size as your last order. For Classics, you may want to move down a size (example: wore a size 9 before, move to 8) as the new fits are larger than before. For Mid Rise, you’ll likely keep to your same size as High Tops - and be wow’d with this revised higher ankle slip-on!
As always - chat with us below, text 929-278-5427, or email us hello@wearejibs.com if you need a reminder to your size!
If you would like to do a return past the 14 day period you may do so with a $15 per order restocking fee, or choose to receive 100% value of initial order as store credit which can be used by yourself, or gifted.
We also offer express shipping via FedEx or UPS; see all options available for your location during check-out.
Call/text 929-278-5427 or email hello@wearejibs.com and we’ll gladly work with you to find the perfect fit and style to match your everyday needs.
Canada + International orders will require you to cover the cost of return/exchange shipping and Sale items are final sale with no returns or exchanges. See here for full Returns + Exchanges Policy plus a summary of services here:
USA (Continental)
FREE USPS, or $25 Rush Courier
FREE Exchanges + Returns
USA (Non-Continental)
$25 USPS, or $40 Express Courier
Customer pays shipping for Exchanges + Returns
Canada*
$30 Canada Post, or $50 Express Courier, plus applicable duties and taxes
Customer pays shipping for Exchanges + Returns
International*
Starting at $40 Postal, or $60 Express Courier, based on order $ value
Customer pays shipping for Exchanges + Returns
See here for full Returns + Exchanges Policy
* The asterisk denotes just now much how we wish we could have better rates for all our jet-setting Jibs-Lifers.... please know we are growing everyday with the thanks of you all and soon enough we may have distribution in your country, or the shipping world may find ways to reduce transport costs! Until then, we'll continue to offer our per-order bulk rates at just below cost and thank you for your understanding.
We LOVE to socialize and thus, even thought we are a Direct To Consumer (DTC) brand, every season we find unique destinations for us to all experience Jibs IRL!
Currently if you are lucky enough to find yourself in these locations you'll find Jibs with our friends at:
--> For Now ACK
| 31 Centre Street, Nantucket, MA 02554 | +1 508-687-4474
--> The Tides Beach Club
| 930 Kings Hwy, Kennebunkport, ME 04046 | +1 800-572-8696
--> Lillo Bella
| 507 State Street, Greensboro, NC 27405 | +1 336-275-7645
--> Lollie
| 2566 W 8th St, Erie, PA 16505 | +1 814-440-7537
--> The Biltmore Hotel
|1200 Anastasia Ave, Coral Gables, FL 33134 | +1 305-445-8066
--> Vêtu
| 20 SW Osceola St, Stuart FL 34994
Pop in, say hi, slip on some fun loving footwear while browsing other fabulous (and many female founded) brands!
PS: we also have a large selection across all Jibs style with our wonderful Zappos partner! If you're looking for a size that is currently SOLD-OUT on our website be sure to check out their Jibs selection and you just may be in luck :)