Oh those Aussies, another brand coming out of that country and changing the style of cycling everywhere. Introducing Sokhyte from Melbourne, a brand of “tall” cycling sock influenced by their Dutch roots. This first collection, featured in this interview, is called The Business. But keep a close eye on their website and Instagram for the release of their new collection any day now, called The Hype. Looking forward to it myself!
What is your favorite Sokhyte sock/shoe combo?
Shimano make a road shoe (R171), this shoe is 1/2 black and 1/2 white. The sokhyte® shoe/sock combo works well with these, the rider can wear any color without crossing the line of a miss match.
Do you adhere to the height rules or answer demand instead?
All our sokhyte® socks are strictly 6″ in height, we use a double leg cuff allowing maximum height all day without compromise. We believe a 6″ (double leg cuff) height is perfect for cyclist and athletes alike – allowing our design to stand out. All our socks are pre-shrunk so the length is kept throughout the lifetime of the socks.
Do you make your own socks or do you use another company to manufacture your designs?
We use a maker in Melbourne. All our socks and packaging are made in Australia. Supporting local business is important to us and our branding.
Why do you think socks are so much fun to wear and design?
Cycling has fast become fashion first, possibly performance second in terms of riding and racing. There are many events around Australia that focus on the journey and memory, rather than crossing the line first. Gran Fondo events have taken over a huge amount of local racing. This type of event has allowed the rider to become individual and wear what they see fit, rather than having to wear a sponsor, or club kit at a race. We offer many colors to help the rider find that mix in a race or Fondo type event, and offer custom request to suit clubs, teams etc.
Why do you not offer a women’s sock different from a men’s? Oftentimes, especially for smaller footed women the design is off when worn and fit can sometimes be not quite right.
We offer a sizing from 35-45+ EU, this covers every size, including juniors, women and large EU sizes of 45+. There is no difference with our womens/mens cut as we use a mixture of cotton, nylon and elastane. This is very important when constructing a performance based sock as the elastane component allows the sock to hold its shape for longer, compared with socks using less elastic. So if a person needs a size 35 EU pair of socks, they can be assured it will stay that size for the lifetime of the socks.
Do you consider mixed materials in your socks for specific purposes – warmer weather, cooler weather, wet weather, etc?
Do materials make a beneficial difference to athletes? We use cotton (60%), nylon (36%) and elastane (4%). This is the perfect mix of thread, it allows the foot to breath, extract sweat and keep the foot comfortable during any type weather. We will look at Merino Wool in the future as well as Bamboo, however we believe our construction, combined with the double leg cuff is perfect.
What is your design inspiration? The meaning behind your designs and patterns?
The first and foremost important part of our design and production is the construction of our socks. We offer a double 6″ leg cuff that we think is perfect for fit, comfort and performance. The reason for this is the socks will never sag or slide down the leg, in any form of event such as an Ironman, Marathon or Cycling event. Our designs are carefully thought out, we research as many brands as we can and try and find a design, or mixture of artwork that is different to the rest. We offer the riders a base color sock, with artwork/patterns added to them. We like to keep our sock designs clean and simple, rather than crossing the line of too many colors in one design.
**Anything new to look out for soon?
We will offer 4-6 color options per design in any given season, toward the end of the season we will promote a new design, and roll it out over the previous design. This will give the wearer a new option of design and color all year round. We will keep our offerings to around 6-10 as too many options can confuse a retailer when it comes to merchandising the shop space.
WomensKit 
Leave a Reply