Ocean Minded Moka Sandal Review

(Admin note: I’m slowly emerging from my post-race gloom, and should have a full report posted by Wednesday night. In the meantime, my wife got another chance to get in on the product review game, and she was quite pleased with the result of this one – and now that the weather is finally getting warmer, the timing seemed perfect to post the review.)

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Regular readers will recall previous posts describing my wife’s ongoing quest to find the perfect pair of flip-flops; this spring, she found a pair that scores pretty high marks, from a company who gets a lot of respect in my book as well.

That company is Ocean Minded.


What does it mean to be Ocean Minded? If you’re a person, it’s living with appreciation and respect for the ocean and all natural resources. It’s combining a laid-back beach attitude with a proactive effort to make the world a better place than we found it. It’s being cool and simplistic, and maintaining your unique identity while embracing the larger community around you.

And if you’re the right kind of company, it can mean all those things as well.

Ocean Minded was born from the Southern California surf culture, and aims to combine the ocean lifestyle – mainly through apparel, sandals, and shoes - with environmental responsibility and community involvement that improves the quality of life for all of us. Think of Sanuk’s mellow surfer-dude vibe crossed with Simple’s mission to be 100% sustainable, and you’ve got a pretty accurate impression of Ocean Minded.

The company invests considerable time and effort on outreach programs and partnerships focused on preserving our natural resources, and makes every effort to reduce its own global footprint as much as possible. Part of their mission statement is “To become the global leader in sustainable lifestyle footwear” that is fashionable, responsible, and comfortable all at once – and if the sandals my wife tested are any indication, they’re doing an awfully good job of it.

Ocean Minded Moka

My wife has been wearing the Moka, which features a premium nubuck leather strap and footbed - tanned with natural vegetable tannins to eliminate chemical byproducts – on top of a soft recycled foam midsole that is approximately ¾” at the heel and ½” in the forefoot. As with all Ocean Minded products, all the adhesives on this sandal are water-based to further diminish their environmental impact. In addition to the midsole, post-consumer content is seen in the outsole that’s cut from a recycled car tire (definitely a reminder of Simple there), and a toe post that is made from recycled plastic bottles.


Best of all, this eco-savvy construction doesn’t prevent the sandal from being fashionable. The Moka would look right at home at the beach, but is stylish enough for a night out to dinner in the summertime.

The official verdict from my wife is that she likes these flips a lot. She loves the soft, smooth feel of the leather strap and footbed, and she says the midsole provides a nice balance of cushioning and ground feel while still allowing her foot to flex naturally while walking. They’ve been a very comfortable all-purpose sandal for her, and - in what might be the most telling endorsement my wife has to offer – they’re her shoes of choice for long shopping days at Costco.

Ocean Minded’s sandals are priced fairly reasonably as well, as the Moka sells for $45 from Amazon.com and other online vendors. Amazon carries almost the entire line of men’s and women’s sandals in addition to the Moka, which can be viewed from the link above as well.


*Product provided by Ocean Minded
**See other product reviews on sidebar at right. If you have a product you’d like reviewed, contact me at info@runningandrambling.com.