About Us
Wheelies was born in April of 2021, when two high schoolers, Lara and Rui do Rosario, pitched their idea of repurposed tire shoes in Team Eric’s Shark Tank Competition, which won them $500.
Since then Wheelies has moved to creating three prototypes, consulting with experts from different industries, like tire company executives, other shoe startups, or local cobblers.
Wheelies is currently preparing to drop its first batch of shoes, which can be pre-ordered on the Kickstarter coming in 1-2 months.
The Problem
Every year, the vast majority of the 300 MILLION tires are dumped into landfills, in the U.S. alone! When these masses of inorganic material sit on our planet day after day, they continue to pollute our soil, groundwater, and most importantly, our air. We can’t just let them sit and decompose, as tires can take up to 2000 years to break down, as their makeup is full of unnatural chemicals.
Additionally, these “tire graveyards” can catch fire, which can release tons of harmful chemicals into the air, all at once!
While there have been significant efforts to reduce our tire waste, there still remains BILLIONS of tires in landfills. The solution to this environmental threat, a colossal one, is Wheelies.