Geox is an Italian brand of shoe

Shoe

A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot while doing various activities. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture to culture, with appearance originally being tied to function...

 and apparel manufactured utilising waterproof/breathable fabric

Waterproof fabric

Waterproof fabrics are fabrics that are inherently, or have been treated to become, resistant to penetration by water and wetting. They are usually natural or synthetic fabrics that are laminated to or coated with a waterproofing material such as rubber, polyvinyl chloride , polyurethane , silicone...

s.

Corporate history

The company was founded in 1995 by Mario Moretti Polegato. The brand name, Geox, was created from a mixture between the Greek word “geo” (earth), and “x”, a letter-element symbolizing technology.

Polegato was born in 1952 near Treviso

Treviso

Treviso is a city and comune in Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 82,854 inhabitants : some 3,000 live within the Venetian walls or in the historical and monumental center, some 80,000 live in the urban center proper, while the city...

. Originally groomed to take over the family wine-making business, company promotional material has it the idea for the shoe came when he participated in a wine industry conference in Reno

Reno

Reno is the fourth most populous city in Nevada, US.Reno may also refer to:-Places:Italy*The Reno River, in Northern ItalyCanada*Reno No...

; while out jogging in Reno's hot desert climate, his feet got hot from the exertion and he had the idea to cut a couple of holes in the soles of his shoes with a Swiss Army knife

Swiss Army knife

The Swiss Army knife is a brand of pocket knife or multi-tool manufactured by Victorinox AG and Wenger SA. The term "Swiss Army knife" was coined by US soldiers after World War II due to the difficulty they had in pronouncing the German name....

.

He developed the idea into a viable product with the help of a small leather-goods business his family owned.

After unsuccessfully pitching his invention to several established footwear manufacturers, but after having passed the market testing phase for a line of children’s footwear, Mario Moretti Polegato began large-scale production of shoes under the Geox brand name. That same year, he improved the original patent and extended the product range to men’s and women’s footwear.

Research and development

The Geox group has consistently invested in innovation, ever since it was founded. Its Montebelluna head offices are host to R&D facilities, which are unique in their kind. Here, 15 engineers, chemists and physicists are employed in research on perspiration and human-generated heat-movement patterns, testing all materials used in their footwear and manufacturing apparel.

The Montebelluna based team of scientists have created and patented new machinery to help them pursue their research. Geox also works with major research labs and universities to test and refine new technology.

Location

Geox is based in Montebelluna

Montebelluna

Montebelluna is a town and comune in Veneto, Italy, approximately 67 kilometers northwest of Venice. It has an estimated population of 30,817.Fila has research and development facilities in Montebelluna. Northwave was started by Gianni Piva in Montebelluna...

, Italy, with factories in Romania, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Brazil, Slovenia, India, Macau, Thailand and South Korea.