8000Kicks hemp shoes opened in 2018 after founder Bernardo Carreira finished his business studies at Purdue University. He decided to make use of his grandmother Maria Otilia’s 50 years of experience in the textile industry and launch a sneaker company with her. “We had no money and no experience, so we went to the only place where they would take two dreamers like us: Kickstarter,” said Carreira. Related: Sylven New York has vegan shoes made from apples After surpassing the Kickstarter goal of $10,000 by accidentally raising $250,000, grandmother and grandson pair knew they had a real company on their hands.