Despite a recent class action lawsuit concerning alleged false claims about Vibram’s FiveFingers running shoes, the company remains bullish on its future and best-known product. So much so, in fact, that it’s offering a new incentive for customers to try the minimalist approach.
“We’re making a guarantee: For anyone who purchases a pair of FiveFingers from now until the end of the year through the website VibramFiveFingers.com and aren’t satisfied after six weeks with the experience—for any reason—we’ll take the shoe back and return a full refund,” Vibram USA CEO Mike Gionfriddo told Runner’s World Newswire on Tuesday.
Vibram is in the process of settling claims that it falsely advertised health benefits associated with FiveFingers, such as that the shoes strengthen muscles and prevent injuries. While the company has set up a $3.75 million settlement fund, it has not admitted to being at fault.
“We feel we had a very good case, but the problem with litigation like this is that we had probably another one year to 18 months of expenses,” Gionfriddo said.
Gionfriddo declined to share specific research that Vibram used as the basis of its FiveFingers marketing claims. “In the interest of full disclosure, there are independent studies out there that make a case for both sides of the argument,” Gionfriddo said. “However, for obvious reasons, we’re not making any claims related to this issue.”
Gionfriddo became CEO of Vibram in July 2012, four months after the class action suit was filed. Before that, he was the company’s chief operating officer.
According to the sporting goods industry tracker SportsOneSoure, minimalist footwear sales have quickly risen and fallen over the past three years. Category revenue increased from approximately $300 million in 2011 to $400 million in 2012. That figure declined by 30 percent in 2013, and has dropped nearly 50 percent so far in 2014, according to SportsOneSource. Even at its peak, however, minimalist shoes represented a small slice of the $7 billion running shoe market.
Gionfriddo is not discouraged by the numbers.
“The minimalist trend is alive and kicking,” he said. “We’ve seen a 17 percent increase in the number of retail accounts since May 1 of this year.” (May is the month the parties agreed to settle the class action suit.)
That number does not relate to sales, Gionfriddo said.
“Sales are stable relative to the last year,” he said. Vibram, a privately held business, declined to release sales data.
Vibram’s class action settlement coincides with the rise of what’s become known as maximalist shoes—plush but lightweight trainers with high midsoles, exemplified by Hoka One One models and now offered by many brands. Hoka's sales increased by $8.2 million from the first quarter of 2013 to the first quarter of 2014. In comparison, Hoka's total sales in 2012 were less than $3 million.
FiveFingers has recently updated several of its models, including the Bikila EVO.
“It’s basically a 100 percent makeover, starting with the midsole being thicker and a different outsole that we feel gives a better gripping performance for both wet and dry surfaces,” Gionfriddo said. The company will continue producing its thin-soled shoes in addition to these shoes that offer an added layer of cushioning, like the Bikila EVO.
“If you’re curious, give us a try,” Gionfriddo said. “It’s really a situation where you have nothing to lose.”
The videos below show our reviews of FiveFingers models over the years, starting with our most current review and moving backward in time.
