Why a goat represents Chivaz and how we give back to the world:

People often ask "Why the goat"? The answer is quite simple, but as always, I will give a long answer explaining all nuances of this decision.

The brand Chivaz was named after a specific goat name Chiva (see Our Story). Chiva is the Spanish word for goat. Therefore Chivaz are “goats” plural, but in this case they are also representations of goats in sock form. 

Why would we name our brand after a goat named Goat (in Spanish)? Glad that you asked. Here is a list: 

Goats are badass, here are a few reasons why:

• Goats are sure footed, have great balance and can climb almost anything

• Goats are strong willed

• Goats are scruffy

• Goats are diverse (they come in all shapes, sizes, horns, no horns)

• Goats adapt incredibly well to their surroundings

• Goats never lose their personality

• Goats will eat anything

• Goats refuse to be contained

• Goats get along well with people and other animals

• Goat (GOAT) is commonly used as an acronym for Greatest of All Time

Still not convinced? 

See this badly recorded commercial for Dominican rum that properly shows what a goat is like (thanks to my wife for remembering this from childhood):

The goat as a representation of our brand also helps us make the world a better place. We do this in two main ways: 

#1: Chivaz are a reminder that you are your best self when you aren’t afraid to stand tall and stand out.

When you put your Chivaz on in the morning, you are telling yourself to show up as your best self that day. You are outwardly expressing your “inner-goat” to the world (if you wear them showing) or to yourself if you keep them under your clothes.

When you showing up as your best self, your contributions come from the heart and have a light in them that is impossible to diminish.

On the other hand, if you are constantly trying to fit in, be part of the “corporate” culture and spend energy “managing perceptions,” you probably aren’t bringing your full self to the table every day.

Chivaz are not saying go out there, rebel and “screw the man.” Instead what Chivaz are is that reminder to be yourself. Whatever your job is, whether you work for yourself or for a giant company, someone hired YOU. Chivaz remind you not to be a robot that fits in, but to express yourself, don’t be afraid to stand out a bit and change the world for the better.

If you are yourself everyday, you will be happier. If you are happier, you will have less stress. When you have less stress, you will have more patience therefore you won't have as much anger & hatred. You might breathe a little bit more before getting upset about something. When you begin to breathe more and express more goodness, the world is filled with a better energy. 

It is not the socks that are making you happy. Chivaz are just that reminder that your life is your choice and that everyday you wear Chivaz, you are aware that your actions that day are just another page in the book of your life. 

#2: Chivaz tries to make the world a prettier place through "clean up" hikes

Goats are nature’s garbage disposals. They will eat almost anything. This can be a nuisance if you are not careful, but if treated properly a goat can really help clean up the environment that you live in.

The Chivaz corporation (read as Matt's house) doesn’t own any goats (yet), but my family loves to get out into nature. We aren’t survivalists that want to go on Naked and Afraid, but we do like to get out for a hike and see beautiful things at least once a week. What we have noticed is that every time we go out we see the trash left behind by others. Lately we have made it a point to bring a bag with us so that we can clean up this trash rather than just ignoring it or pointing out what an eyesore it is.

Below is my son picking up a DQ cup and 10 Barrel bottle cap (he keeps a collection of bottle caps):

Call us old school, but these personal “clean-up hikes” actually make a difference that you can see. 

That to me feels really good and hopefully has a nice effect on others as well. We make a game out of who can pick up the most trash while we are out there and we encourage others to do the same. If everyone would simply just clean up their trash, our world would be a much more beautiful place for us to enjoy.

If you are cleaning up trash on your outings, please let us know. Tag your pictures @chivazwear and #goatcleaner and you might win a free pair of Chivaz! 

Does Chivaz have a corporate charity or charitable cause?:

No one wants to support a soulless company these days. There are too many examples of corporate greed, pollution, short term thinking and just plain evil.

On the other side of the coin are companies that are being started with making the world a better place right in their mission statements.

In fact so many companies are giving back right now that it is almost impossible to distinguish between them all. I would personally like to thank Tom’s shoes for almost making it a requirement that you have to give back to this world what you are getting from it.

Chivaz doesn’t “give back” in the traditional sense of the words. We have given out a lot of socks, but we’ve never had any cash to be able to give back to charity or anything like that. This may change in the future.

In summary:

#1: Be a goat, not a sheep - show up to be yourself, not to follow the herd

#2: Clean up around you - Goat’s are nature’s garbage disposals. You can get your goat on and help bring out the beauty of your environment

So here at Chivaz we aren’t giving away money or contributing to non-profit charities, yet. Although I will often donate product to other causes. Maybe one day when we are profitable, we will be able to. But for now, we are just dedicated to making the world a better place in the ways that we know how that feel right to our goat hearts.