Best foot forward: Entrepreneur making shoes from chicken feet to promote waste management
Waste management
Nurman Farieka Ramdhany is the founder of this business venture.
Ramdhany said he is mainly motivated by the opportunity to use a waste product from fast-food restaurants and markets, his main suppliers.
"The waste is a lot, that is why we try to process it to get more value from it," he said.
Rubbery delicacy
A rubbery delicacy in many cuisines, including dim sum, chicken feet are covered with skin that has a similar texture and pattern to snake or crocodile skin.
Ancestral heritage
Ramdhany's father had researched these more exotic skins and recommended he try making shoes with chicken feet, which he started doing in 2017.
Labour-intensive operation
Ramdhany and a team of five, including his father, produce shoes entirely or partially made from chicken feet in a labour-intensive operation that takes 10 days. They skin the feet by hand, dye the skins and sew them into pieces that can be fashioned into shoes.
Expensive luxury
It takes 45 chicken feet to make a pair of shoes, which are priced between $35 and $140.
Positive feedback
Ramdhany says customers like his shoes. "They say our products are comfortable to wear. So far the market response has been positive."
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