Okay, okay, simmer down. As promised, we’ve got the results of the Monkey Bag Caption Contest!

Now that we’re all back in the lovely USA and rested we had time to thoroughly comb through all the (equally lovely) entries. It was a long process during which our opinions varied. We laughed, we cried, we almost took it to a thumb-wrestling match to settle disputes.

Throughout the ordeal, one entry remained a favorite among us all. Simple, funny, and addressing all three ‘characters’ in the photo. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Please read the winning entry just below the photo:

“You know, turtle, when I said that Gizeh would go with everything, I didn’t mean all at once.” -melissasantos

Congratulations are in order for Melissa Santos! We’ll get this bag out to you in a jiffy.

Thank you EVERYONE for playing along. Please continue to come back and check in with us here on the Birkenstock Blog, we’ll have more opportunities like this down the road. Here’s a hint at getting a leg up on the competition: we’ll be announcing future contests right here on the blog and chances are (highly) likely that they will require your participation in the Birkenstock 365 Project. So, grab the advantage, donate your pictures here.

Until then…

Tread Lightly,

Aaron

Here it is, folks! Your chance to win the ever-elusive Monkey Bag is upon you.

We’ve had some great feedback about this bag, which we had manufactured for an advertisement photo shoot. A few of you wanted it, even. Well, we aren’t gonna make another one because we’re in the business of selling FOOTWEAR but, hey, we’ll play along! If you really want your chance at winning this one-of-a-kind bag you’d be well advised to continue reading, the deets are below.

Contest rules:
- This is a good ole fashioned caption contest. There’s a picture of the Monkey Bag at the bottom of this blog post. It desperately needs a fitting caption. Enter your submissions as comments here in our blog. If you’re reading this through Facebook, please navigate to our blog and place your entries here. Facebook comments will not count.
- This contest will run from today, Friday August 7th until Sunday August 15th. That gives you well over a week. The winner will be announced Tuesday August 17th.
-You may enter as many times as you like, you have ample time so come up with something awesome.
- Keep it classy.
- In the picture: the Monkey Bag, a Gizeh in White Patent, a vinyl toy of a turtle protruding from a skull wrapped in a camper van. Yah, I know, challenging. That was the whole idea.

Here’s what you’re workin with:

Don’t fret if your comments don’t get published right away, we have to approve of them first. So long as you keep it classy like we asked they will all make it to the blog. Good Luck!

Tread Lightly,

Aaron

We received this email yesterday from a confirmed Birkenstock lover and just had to share:

Tonight, I was walking my dog with a neighbor and I was wearing my Zurichs. They became a point of discussion because of their age and unique history. She could not believe that I have had these shoes for 30 years. In fact, she pointed out that she was one when I bought them! Shame on her!

Yes, they are my favorites and they have walked many miles around the planet with me. I bought them in New Haven Connecticut in 1979 and most people who saw them on my feet made fun of me. They made fun until I let them try them on! Back then, they were the MOST expensive pair of shoes I had ever purchased and coveted them for a long time before I could afford to buy them. From the minute I put them on my feet…. I could not take them off. Yes, even in the snowy months!

Anyhow, I have grown up with these shoes. I went to see Simon and Garfunkel in Central Park in them…. explored Stonehenge … rode an elephant in the jungle of Thailand in them…. hot air ballooning in Morroco….walked the streets of Llhasa wearing my trusty Birks! I walked the communities in the four states I have lived in wearing them. These shoes have been re-corked… barged… soled and worn back down yet again.

I wear them because now they are beyond shoes…. they are ol’ friends. Over the years, I have purchased 4 other pairs… all of which I enjoy but not like my Zurichs! There is something magical about these shoes! I am happy when I am in them. I am an explorer… an adventurer…. a wild woman breaking out of the ordinary in them and what’s funny is… I have felt all of these things since I bought them. It is sort of like the shoes have blazed my trail. I never know where the trail will lead but I definitely know what will be on my feet!

I share all of this for no other reason but to say thank you! I am so glad you brought Birkenstock to the US! I love my Zurichs! While my walk tonight might seem like an ordinary affair…. my neighbor and I agree…. it was truly extraordinary. How many can say that they have had their shoes for 30 years and will travel in them for 30 more gladly! And as my friend noted… “and they don’t even smell!” Just laugh.

Peace and Happy Trails!

Nora

And here’s a picture of Nora and her Zurich sandals living life to the full!

Susie Tompkins Buell (co-founder of Esprit, political activist and philanthropist) dropped us a note to let us know how much she loves the Birkenstock brand. She says;

Brands and products that we’ve relied on for years are fizzling out. The way I see it, there are very few iconic products that are left for us to enjoy and learn from. I like to call them standbys: they’ll always be there to come back to if you wandered off for a spell. I have my favorite standards, like Levi’s 501 jeans, Brooks Bros. classic button downs, Hermes Kelly bag, a perfect white Hanes tee, Lacoste polo, and of course, my Birkenstock sandals. New fits, colors, and textures will inevitably be added to the basics, but these classics will always endure. There’s no better look than that of the confident wearer of the classics in lieu of the trendy fly-by-night fashion that’s being pushed on consumers today.

Peace, love and Birkenstock,

Susie

Here’s a picture of Susie (wearing a pair of Birkenstock Gizeh, or course) with Paul Smith at his San Francisco store opening.

photo credit: Drew Altizer

If you’re interested in reading about another great entrepreneur and leader, check out this great profile of Margot Fraser, the founder of Birkenstock USA in the current issue of Inc. magazine.