We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sabrina Kihm. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sabrina below.
Alright, Sabrina thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.
Message from our founder Sabrina:
My journey started from early age. I knew that I wanted to discover the world. I wanted to live full hearted and I wanted to travel as there was no tomorrow. I was born and raised in Germany and after my high school graduation I left my hometown to study abroad and I have since then lived abroad.
I got a full scholarship in the U.S thanks to playing tennis. Then I did exchanges in Bologna, Madrid and Paris. II went to continue living abroad working in istanbul, Luxembourg, Hong Kong and Rio de Janeiro
I was fascinated by an international lifestyle and do deep dive in any culture that I need up becoming fluent in 7 languages.
I was so fortunate because I met incredible people that made this journey so incredible. I decided to give back and so I became a life-coach to inspire other people to overcome obstacles and break free. All my experiences with people, different cultures and different design led me to build a brand that should inspire women to be strong and confident and to be seen. Bobobali is a very colourful brand that expresses happiness and strength and the desire to follow your dreams. No matter how crazy they are!
We created a shoe and hat that was inspired by a 25000 mile long circle that goes through many significant ancient sights around the globe.
It passes through Latin America from machu Picu to Africa it crosses Mali and the mysterious Dogon Land and then goes through Giza and Petra. The line goes through Asia in Thailand Sukotai and Angor what and it ends with the most isolated and mysterious place on earth Easter Island.
What does a fashion brand have to do with those 23 places?
We want you to feel part of the worlds energy alignment with every step you take.
Each place has their own local cultural, material and fashion and we will give you all those styles inspired by the places of the ancient alignment in one shoe thanks to our unique removable belt system.
Wherever you go, you can change the accessory according to your mood and personalize your look.
Since this shoe will accompany you on a long journey, we used a new technology to create a 3D printed mold that I personally tested. We made over 10 prototypes and tested more than 50 different women to develop the most comfortable, versatile, and technologically advanced boot you will ever wear.
As you can see, Bobobali is taking a fundamentally different approach from the usual industry standards by creating only one model of shoe available in various colors with exchangeable accessories.
Why the exchangeable accessories?
We aim to provide high value to the customer. Instead of continually buying new shoes, we designed a system around the shoes that can accommodate up to 3 different accessories. This allows the customer to always create a new look by simply switching accessories.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
As a professional tennis player, I have dedicated my life to perfecting my skills on the court. However, throughout my career, I faced a persistent problem that many athletes encounter -uncomfortable and ill-fitting shoes that took a toll on my feet.
With every intense match, my feet were subjected to grueling movements, quick pivots, and explosive sprints. It soon became evident that tennis had a strong impact on my feet.
I had to be even more careful with my choice of shoes of the tennis court.
That realization ignited my passion to create the perfect shoe – one that offers unparalleled comfort and style at the same time .
Bobobali was born. A Brand to empower the active woman.
After extensive research and collaboration with leading shoe professionals, I have developed a revolutionary line of boots that address common foot issues and provide ultimate comfort without compromising on style. These shoes are meticulously designed to offer the perfect fit, utilizing cutting-edge technology and premium materials.
One of the key features that sets my boots apart
are a small system on the boots to exchange the shoe accessories.
On top of the boots, I also created a matching hat and kimono to have a total look.
The kimono is made of Egyptian cotton that is light and breathing active and anti sweat. So you can wear it an all your travels without getting soaked by intense heat.
I invite you to explore my collection and experience the difference they can make in your game. Each pair is crafted with my passion, expertise, and dedication to ensure that you can focus solely on what matters most – your performance. Say goodbye to discomfort and hello to the perfect comfortable boots for women like you.
Choose excellence, choose comfort – choose my revolutionary boots. Your feet will thank you.
Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?
I am a huge fan of social media. Before starting my company I actually built an instagram account just with inspirational content around a Bohème look. This is how I grew my first audience and potential customers. Then I created a prototype for the boots and I took content with the boots. I also really enjoyed modelling for my own brand. Once I posted to boots I shared that people could order them via dm. I collected around 50 orders in the first month and I negotiated with the producer to make a small first batch of 50 pairs. Like this I was profitable from day one. I explained to customers that I was a start up and there would be some delays but it was amazing how no one complained and they just answered thank you for communicating so transparent. The reason I share this is because I want to teach others not to be afraid to be honest with your customers. You are out there in the arena trying to create something. I was doing it all alone. No help from friends or family. I funded all alone. It’s a lot and it’s ok not to per perfect. Just be Transportern. For me this was the biggest surprise – how kind and caring people were. A lot of them literally said I know you are trying to create something unique and different and that can take time sometimes.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
RESILIENCE is my favourite word. A lot of very resilient people don’t even know the world resilience. Their journey and constant challenge has turned them into a star solution finders and they are always positive and always look ahead. That’s why they don’t even know that they are resilient. I actually didn’t know the word until my friend made me aware of it. I was telling her my journey and I basically said I just never seen a problem. I just go go. After playing tennis professional for some time I had to make a decision if it’s only tennis for the rest of my life or if I wanted more. It was a tough battle for me when my parents obliged me to finish high school while already playing tournaments. All I wanted was to play tennis but once I only played tennis I actually missed studying. ( yes I know we always want it all 😅) anyway so when I got a scholarship offered to study in the states I thought this might be a message. So when I accepted the offer my English was basic and within only 3 month I started to pick up English quite fast, passed all my exams and then I thought let’s take it to the next level and do the rest of my undergrad every year in a different language. People thought I was crazy and set up for failure but I didn’t think that. I just had a goal and of course in between it was hard but my determination was stronger. I end up studying in Italy in Italian and in Spain in Spanish and then did my masters in French in France. Because I overcame any obstacle it just made me more resilient. I have so often heard in my life you can’t do that. The list is long I could talk for hours about resilience :)
Image Credits
All images are owners by sabrina kihm