Rainbow Sandals Inc. was established in 1974 in

Laguna Beach, California Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish language, Spanish for "Lagoon") is a city in Orange County, California, United States. Located in Southern California along the Pacific Ocean, this seaside resort city has a mild year-round climate, scenic c ...

by Jay Longley and is currently based in

San Clemente, California San Clemente (; Spanish for " St. Clement" ) is a coastal city in southern Orange County, California, United States. It was named in 1925 after the Spanish colonial island (which was named after a Pope from the first century). Located in the ...

. The company specializes in men's and women's leather,

hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a plant in the botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest ...

, and rubber

flip-flops Flip-flops are a type of light sandal-like shoe, typically worn as a form of casual footwear. They consist of a flat sole held loosely on the foot by a Y-shaped strap known as a toe thong that passes between the first and second toes and around ...

. When Longley first started making

sandal Sandals are an open type of shoe, consisting of a sole held to the wearer's foot by straps going over the instep and around the ankle. Sandals can also have a heel. While the distinction between sandals and other types of footwear can sometim ...

s, he was assembling 15 pairs per day out of leather and Malaysian rubber in the garage of his Laguna Beach home. He relocated to

San Clemente San Clemente (; Spanish for " St. Clement" ) is a coastal city in southern Orange County, California, United States. It was named in 1925 after the Spanish colonial island (which was named after a Pope from the first century). Located in the O ...

in 1974 and began manufacturing 1,200 pairs of sandals a day. Since 2002, Longley had to move 75% of production to China because of a solvent in the glue he uses. Longley had to install a catalytic oxidizer at his San Clemente factory that scrubs all the

volatile organic compounds Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds that have a high vapor pressure at room temperature. They are common and exist in a variety of settings and products, not limited to house mold, upholstered furniture, arts and crafts sup ...

out of the glue before they are emitted into the air. He is legally permitted to make only 1,000 pairs per day in San Clemente. In China, they use a glue without volatile organic compounds. Longley cannot use this glue in California because it is too combustible under the fire code.

References

External links

Official website
* * *{{cite news , first= Hang , last=Nguyen , title= $7 billion sandal industry is in midst of one of its prime selling seasons , url=http://www.ocregister.com/articles/sandals-66616-sandal-footwear.html , work=Orange County Register , date=21 Apr 2006 , access-date=2008-07-27 Shoe companies of the United States Manufacturing companies based in California Companies based in San Clemente, California Clothing companies established in 1974 1974 establishments in California