Alohas

We're switching it up this week with our biggest brand yet: Alohas.

With 1.2 million Instagram followers, Alohas is a nice change of pace from the usual small brands featured here. Having a bigger brand to dissect means we get a lot more historic branding moves to look at, a seasoned marketing team (with 83 employees across the company), and, if I’m being honest, I don’t feel too bad about being a little more critical this time around. 

I first found Alohas on my quest to find a snazzy, modern rendition of the classic German Army Trainer. I was brainrotting on Instagram Stories and — boom — an Alohas ad popped up with exactly what I was looking for. I just love having my thoughts monitored by my phone. On first impression, Alohas shoes looked well-designed, high quality, and sustainable.

What’s not to love? 

Well, I guess you’ll have to continue reading on. 

So What is Alohas?

Alohas was founded back in 2015 in Honolulu, Hawaii, originally setting out to put a fresh twist on the classic espadrille - a quintessential Spanish summer shoe. Their early focus was simple: take a timeless style, modernize it, and inject a little island spirit.

But over time, the brand evolved beyond just espadrilles. After relocating to Barcelona, Spain, Alohas expanded their offering into full fall and winter collections, including boots, clothing, and accessories of all shapes and colors. With the move came a major style shift, too, leaning heavily into the polished, chic, "European effortless" look that dominates TikTok GRWMs today and made me feel bad about my fashion sense when I was studying abroad in Copenhagen.

But as the brand grew, so did its messaging. After establishing itself in Spain, Alohas began to shift its branding toward sustainability. Sustainability wasn't the foundation the brand was originally built on, but it gradually became a major part of how they positioned themselves to consumers. Today, Alohas markets itself as a leader in "conscious" fashion, tying their identity closely to the idea of minimizing waste and promoting ethical production — though, as we’re about to dive into, the reality behind those claims deserves a closer look.

Sustainability claims: 

“The ALOHAS way is about bringing sustainable production and responsible shopping to the forefront of the fashion industry.” Well at least that’s what the first sentence of their LinkedIn description says… 

At their core, Alohas runs an on-demand production model. New collections launch at a 30% discount to reward early shoppers, drop to 15% off once production kicks off, and hit full price once items are in stock. It's a smart model: it limits overproduction, manages inventory, and makes you feel like you're saving the planet (and your wallet) by ordering early.

Along with this, Alohas highlights:

• Local manufacturing in Spain and Portugal

• Recycled materials and vegan leather options

• An optional carbon offset donation at checkout

Sounds solid? 

That’s what they want you to think. 

Dissecting each of Alohas' big sustainability claims:

First, local manufacturing in Spain and Portugal is usually a good thing — both countries have stronger labor laws compared to places where fast fashion is typically made. But without transparency into which factories they use or third-party labor audits, there's no way to know if the workers actually experience good working conditions. 

Second, recycled materials and vegan leather options sound good at face value. Recycled components are definitely a step up from virgin plastic or rubber. Vegan leather can also be a win for animal welfare — but it’s important to note that a lot of "vegan leather" is still just plastic-based (PU or PVC), which tends to crack faster and wear out sooner than real leather. Alohas does use some higher-quality plant-based alternatives like cactus and apple leather, but even these often contain synthetic binders to make them flexible and durable. As a result, they aren’t fully biodegradable — and they still don't match the durability of traditional leather, meaning products made from them may not last as long before needing to be replaced.

Third, carbon offsets are already a sketchy solution even when companies do them themselves. They’re basically a way of saying, "Oops, we polluted, but it’s fine because we paid someone else to plant a tree." But Alohas isn’t even doing that. Instead, they give you the option at checkout to pay your own money to offset their emissions. That’s not sustainability leadership, that’s like passing the basketball right before your team gets a shot clock violation just so you don't get credited for the turnover and your teammate does instead.

Sources like Curiously Conscious and Project Cece point out that Alohas lacks real transparency. No detailed supplier maps. No third-party labor audits. No public emissions reduction goals. When Curiously Conscious wrote a blog about the shoes Alohas gave her to review, the shoes showed up in a plastic bag. They sent plastic waste to a sustainability blogger. Bruh.

At this point, calling them fully sustainable feels generous. 

Especially considering that, back in 2021, Forbes wrote about how Alohas was branching into sustainable fashion — meaning it wasn't part of the original DNA of the brand, but more of a pivot to fit the current market.

To give them the benefit of the doubt... maybe they’re not deliberately greenwashing.

Maybe.

But at the very least, they’re perfectly fine letting you think they’re doing more than they actually are. Or, they’re really bad at marketing what they actually do for the environment and love to have us sit in the dark. I doubt the latter. 

Content and Marketing

Alohas clearly has an adept marketing team. One of their smartest moves came with a 2023 campaign where they managed to turn a PR mistake into a major win. In 2021, model Kaia Gerber misnamed the brand during an interview, saying her boots were from "By Far" instead of Alohas.

Rather than brushing it off, Alohas leaned into the moment with a tongue-in-cheek campaign: "Back in 2021, mistakes were made. But don't feel bad for us, we're over it now. To make amends, we designed the Kaia boots."

They announced the boots would only launch if Kaia herself responded — and after a full social media push (with fans tagging her relentlessly), she did. The resulting video racked up over 600,000 views on Instagram, and the Kaia boots officially dropped. Alohas turned what could have been a throwaway embarrassment into brand buzz and viral content.

On a more day-to-day level, their digital ads are also pretty effective.

Their Instagram ads are everywhere — and honestly, I click on them more than I want to admit, so clearly they're doing something right.

They also run strong Google ads, spanning search, image, shopping, and video formats. However, a lot of their ad creative heavily emphasizes sustainability as a unique value proposition. Considering how shaky some of those claims are when you dig deeper, leaning too hard on that messaging could end up backfiring if consumers start looking closer.

One missed opportunity?

Alohas doesn’t seem to use TikTok yet — which feels like a natural next move if they have the resources.Their aesthetic and aspirational "European summer" vibe would fit right into the TikTok universe, especially with GRWMs, travel vlogs, OOTDs, and sustainable fashion hauls.

Recommendations

Tier 1: Basic Fixes That Should’ve Happened Yesterday

Alohas’ biggest marketing hook is their claim to sustainability. If you're going to position yourself as the "sustainable fashion alternative," you have to actually deliver — or at least back it up convincingly. They could do this through:

Transparency Hub: Alohas needs a real, public-facing hub on their website that lays everything out clearly: full supply chain maps, third-party labor audit results, environmental impact reports, and real emissions targets (with deadlines). No more "trust us,” people want receipts.

Own the Carbon Offsets: Offsets are a sketchy solution to begin with, but pushing the cost onto customers is even worse. If Alohas wants credibility, they should invest in carbon reduction themselves first — measurable actions like lower-emissions shipping, greener materials, and internal offsetting initiatives — before even mentioning customer add-ons.

Packaging Overhaul: Shipping sustainable shoes in plastic bags completely undermines the brand story. Alohas should switch to recycled/recyclable paper packaging with minimal ink and branding. First impressions matter, and your packaging is the first real-world brand touchpoint.

Tier 2: Still Basic, But Way More Fun 

Right now, Alohas' visual identity feels... fine. But it's also sliding dangerously close to the same minimalist, all-caps, bold font that every small clothing brand and startup is running into the ground.

Introducing a Logo: It's time for Alohas to develop an actual logo - something that can stand alone, feel iconic, and be flexible across both physical and digital branding. A subtle nod to their Spanish/Hawaiian roots could make it memorable and authentic, not just another sans-serif placeholder.

Pressure Wash Graffiti Campaign: Alohas should pressure-wash their new logo (and maybe even a silhouette of a shoe) onto the main streets of Barcelona, Madrid, and Lisbon. It's "sustainable vandalism,” no paint, no waste, and it could go viral. 

Tier 3: Go Global, Stay Real

Throw an event series celebrating Alohas’ unique story, where Spanish nightlife and Hawaiian beach culture crash into each other — hosting one event in each city: Honolulu, Barcelona, Madrid, and Lisbon.

Picture poke stations next to tapas plates. Flamenco dancers swapping sets with hula performers. DJs blending reggaetón, Spanish techno, and Hawaiian classics into one giant, all-night dance floor. Specialty cocktails mixing Mai Tais and cava. And the exclusive merch? You can only buy it if you survive until 2 a.m. — when, according to the Spanish, the real party actually starts.

Lastly, Alohas should tie in the community. Partner with Spanish and Hawaiian artisans to create products that reflect real culture, not just aesthetics. Donate part of the event profits to environmental organizations protecting coastlines in both Spain and Hawaii — giving back to the places that shaped the brand’s identity.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, Alohas gets a lot right - beautiful designs, strong marketing, and a smart business model that’s at least trying to address overproduction. They're playing in a crowded market and have carved out a recognizable niche with their "European summer meets sustainable shopping" branding.

But if they want to ensure they’re future-proof, they’re going to have to do more than just ride the sustainability wave, they’ll have to actually put in the work to create it, like Maui in Moana 2. Real transparency. Real innovation. Real action that backs up the promises.

Alohas is a brand worth watching — not just for the shoes, but for how they evolve when consumers start asking harder questions. And if they follow through? They could become not just a player in conscious fashion, but a real leader.

Until then, I'll keep clicking on their Instagram ads... but I'll also keep reading the fine print.