Walking to Sweat: Cori Burns on Creating Women’s Walking Shoes for Fitness

Cori Burns had always loved running, but eventually pregnancy pushed her to walking for exercise. She found she loved it, but quickly realized there weren't any shoes made for women who walked for fitness. So, she set out to create them herself.

In 2023 she launched Raesyn, a technical shoe company making shoes “for women who walk to sweat.” Cori shares how she spotted a gap in the shoe industry, what went into designing a shoe for women who walk for exercise, and the determination it took to turn her idea into Raesyn.

“I wanted something that made me feel effortless in my motion forward. It’s a different movement than running – it’s constant ground contact. So I thought to myself, there's truly a gap in the market."

Hear Cori talk about:

• What makes walking for exercise different from running
• When she noticed there was a need for walking shoes
• What she looked for in the ideal women’s walking shoe
• The process to get from prototype to a shoe ready for market

Mentioned in this episode:

• Raesyn Shoes — Cori’s footwear brand
• Girls Who Walk Baltimore, the walking group Cori mentioned
• Cori’s walking workouts and Substack

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