Business and community leaders celebrated Friday as footwear manufacturer Shloop cut the ribbon on its new retail showroom featuring its house brand of BLKSWN shoes. The sustainable shoe company is housed in the former Hooper Electronics building on 22nd Avenue, bringing another industry to downtown.

“It’s awesome that you guys are downtown,” Meridian Main Street Director Matt Schanrock said. “When I go to these Main Street events, I get to talk about you guys because no one else has anything like this.”

Community Development Director Craig Hitt said he remembers hearing about the vision for Shloop many years ago, and seeing that vision go from a dream to a reality is a great thing.

“Certainly today we celebrate that the dream has come true, and now you have an opportunity to sell the product not only here in Meridian but in other areas,” he said. “And we certainly appreciate the effort that you’ve made, the investment that you’ve made, the employees that you have and what it means to this community.”

Shloop CEO Mike Van Drunen said his company is working to put Meridian on the map, not only as a destination for arts and culture, but as the home of American shoe manufacturing. The vast majority of shoes purchased in the United States are imported, he said, but Shloop is working to change that.

“We are training people, we are creating jobs and we are bringing back the craft of shoemaking back to the United States,” he said. “The USA has the capacity to compete with any country. We should not be relying on other countries to take care of the basic needs of our people.”

The company’s house brand of footwear, BLKSWN, is part of that effort, Van Drunen said. Black swan events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, are moments that drastically alter the course of history, he said. Shloop hopes its made-in-America footwear will also change history and bring footwear manufacturing back to the United States, he said.

“So one of the things we decided to do was bring footwear manufacturing back and create our own black swan event,” he said. “So when you see the black swan, I want you to always remember where our country has come from and where we need to go.”

Starting in 2025, Shloop will begin supplying footwear to the United States government, Van Durnen said, and other shoe brands are also reaching out to learn more about the company and the domestic manufacturing process. As the company sees more opportunities come its way, he said, Meridian’s other businesses, hotels and restaurants will also benefit and the community, together, will grow.

“I’ve been telling many people that things are going to be changing here. There’s going to be big brands coming in here. We’re going to have celebrities, we’re going to have professional athletes, people that want to have their shoes made in the United States,” he said. “So we’re excited to be a part of that, and with that, we will make Meridian great again.”

The opening of Shloop’s retail showroom comes just as the company is getting ready to release its spring line of shoes, Van Drunen said, so shoppers will get to see new selections almost weekly through the end of the year. The company is also getting ready to release a line of shearling slippers that should be available for purchase around Black Friday, he said.

“And lastly, I just want you to remember Shloop and BLKSWN is more than a brand,” he said. “It’s a movement that shows how American industry can thrive when innovation, craftsmanship and determination come together.”