our company

the history of Z-CoiL Footwear

A Manufacturing Partner Willing to Gamble

Not easily discouraged, Al kept searching, and in 1993 he happened to see an advertisement from a South Korean shoe manufacturer who was looking for new clients. Mr. Yong Oh Lee, who had been making shoes for 20 years, including products for Nike® and Reebok®, offered to construct a shoe of any design for 50 dollars. Needless to say, Mr. Lee was taken aback by Al’s unusual concept, but was willing to accept the challenge.

Over the next few years Mr. Lee produced a series of prototypes, working with Al to continually refine the design of his coil-spring shoes. Finally, in 1995 Al patented his design, and he and his son Andrés Gallegos opened the doors of Z-Tech, Inc. in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Andrés, a pharmaceutical product manager for such products as Lubriderm® and Centrum Silver® vitamins, had always seen great potential in his father’s invention. So with an initial production quantity of 2000 pairs, they launched the model Z-01 as the best running shoe ever.

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