Kino Sandals-A Key West Discovery

Before I moved to Mississippi for grad school, I lived in a beach community in Northeast Florida, where flip flops and sandals are a staple wardrobe item. One of the most popular brands of sandals around Florida are Kinos, which are handmade leather sandals made in Key West. These sandals are very cute, durable, and incredibly low priced (the most expensive sandal they sell is $14).

Kino Sandals is a family owned and operated sandal factory in Key West. The owners are Cuban immigrants who settled in Key West in the 1960s and founded Kino Sandals in 1966. The Kino Sandal Factory is a short walk off Duval Street on the corner of Fitzpatrick Street and Green Street and is reminiscent of an "Old Key West" style building. The factory smells like leather and you can see people making sandals while you are being helped.

Kinos has men's, women's, and children's styles, but women have the most options for styles. Several of the sandals come in different colors. My personal favorites are the "Julia" and the "Cordones". These sandals are handmade leather with a natural rubber sole, and several of them have buckles on them. These sandals take a few days to break in, but are honestly the most comfortable and long lasting sandals I have ever had. Kinos only accepts money orders or cashier's check with an order form for all their orders (unless you visit the store of course!). I have ordered from them several times and can vouch for their credibility and quick delivery. I had my sandals within a week of sending the order. I highly recommend this fairly well-kept Florida secret!

Photos from Kino Sandals