LUNA Sandals was named the overall winner of the fifth-annual American Made Outdoor Gear Award. The award was announced on Jan 11th during a ceremony at the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market in Salt Lake City, UT.

Conceptualized and hosted by Kokatat, the American Made Outdoor Gear Awards were open to all American manufacturers with a compelling story.

“We had another year of fantastic entries, but LUNA was a clear standout,” said Jeff Turner of Kokatat. “Like so many great brands, LUNA started in a garage, and they have embraced domestic manufacturing as a way to support their local community while growing their greater community.”

LUNA Sandals handcrafts its world’s best adventure sandals in Seattle, WA. As winners of the American Made Outdoor Gear Award, LUNA Sandals will take one-year ownership of the “Sassy” travelling trophy - a two-foot tall, redwood Sasquatch, hand carved by local artisan from Humboldt County, CA.

Kokatat’s hosting of the awards is rooted in its own history, as the brand’s founder and president, Steve O’Meara, recognized from the start that keeping production local was necessary in order to control quality and continually develop the finest and driest paddling apparel in the world.

In addition to the overall winner, winners in several categories based on company size were also awarded. The category winners were presented with a miniature version of the Sassy award during the celebration, which took place in the Stormy Kromer booth during the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market.

Category winners of the 2017 American Made Outdoor Gear awards include:

Under 10 Employees:

Cleverhood of Providence, RI, a cycling cape manufacturer.

10 to 50 Employees:

Frost River of Duluth, MN, a bag and durable goods manufacturer.

50 to 100 Employees:

Rock Exotica of Orem, UT, a rock climbing gear manufacturer.

100+ Employees:

Exxel Outdoors of Boulder, CO, an outdoor gear manufacturer.

In the five years of the program the American Made Outdoor Gear Awards has received over 300 entries from domestic manufacturers. Past overall winners have included Liberty Bottleworks of Yakima, WA, Benchmade Knives of Portland, OR, Sterling Rope of Biddeford, ME, and Hyperlight Mountain Gear, also of Biddeford, ME.