Better take care of these sandals, because they’ll cost more than an arm and a leg to replace.
Eco-conscious footwear company Chipkos has collaborated with L.A. artist David Palmer to create the world’s most expensive flip-flops, ringing up at a wallet-busting $18,000. (For that price, you could score 36 pairs of Manolo Blahniks — or 3,600 pairs of Old Navy flip-flops.) However, your money won’t be spent in vain: as part of the company’s Stand for Square Feet campaign, you will be preserving 100,000 square feet of endangered Costa Rican rainforest for every pair you purchase. Also included in the sticker price is a meet-and-greet with the artist and two nights in an LEED-certified Beverly Hills hotel. For those on more modest budgets, Chipkos sells a less luxe pair for $42 that will protect 100 square feet of land.
LIST: Top 10 Most Expensive Auction Items
The conservation-minded company believes that “sandals have the power to protect more than just your feet.” Priya Jaggia, Chipkos’ founder and Chief Nature Ambassador, stated on Chipkos’ website that she was inspired “to use worldly and ethnic trends” as an avenue for environmental change after traveling through India and Jamaica. “Most things that we do to help the environment are reactive, yet protecting rain forest land before it was tarnished seemed refreshingly proactive to me.”
The sandals are hand-painted using eco-friendly 18-karat gold, and their unconventional square shape was inspired by a traditional Indian style. But if you’re worried about wear and tear, fear not. The flip-flops come with their own display case, because presumably, you won’t be wearing these to the supermarket.