Paraboot Footwear

Paraboot is an iconic French heritage footwear brand established in 1927 by Rémy Richard-Pontvert. The roots of the company date back to 1908 in Izeaux, Isère, France, where Richard-Pontvert initially crafted fine footwear. Inspired by the natural rubber 'latex' boots he encountered during a visit to the Americas, he registered the Paraboot name—combining 'Para', a port city in Brazil known for exporting natural rubber latex, and 'boot'.

Renowned for traditional Norwegian and Goodyear welted construction, Paraboot manufactures the vast majority of its footwear in its workshops located in Saint-Jean-de-Moirans and Izeaux in southeastern France. The brand is particularly distinguished by its in-house vulcanized rubber sole production, a rare capability among modern footwear manufacturers. Certain lightweight slip-ons, driving shoes, or deck shoes in their broader line may be produced in workshops in Spain or Portugal.

The brand remains under the stewardship of its founding family through Chaussures Paraboot S.A. (and parent entity Richard-Pontvert S.A.), maintaining an independent legacy of French artisan shoemaking.