Wired News: Pulling Up by Their Sandal Straps: "

Success created other problems. Some of the firm's managers misappropriated money, corrupt police shook down Ecosandals' workers, and armed robbers raided the company's offices. Although no one was injured and little was stolen, the robbery scared the workers so much that the company had to move out of the center of Korogocho into a guarded building with locks on the doors.



Even with the revenues flowing in, local realities made it difficult to save and invest.



'The sandal makers are so poor, and their neighbors are so poor. It's very difficult to leave 100,000 or 200,000 shillings (about $1,400 to $2,800) in the bank when you know that people need medicine to survive,' said Meyer. It is not uncommon for Kenyans to die because they cannot afford medications for treatable ailments.

"