( CNN ) -- As protests continue across the Middle East , American shoemaker Bahman Irvani remembers 1979 . That year , he and his family fled Iran after the revolution leaving behind their thriving footwear business . `` We left Iran because the government took over not only our businesses but our personal assets as well , '' said 59-year-old Irvani , whose family had been manufacturing shoes there for over 50 years . In 1983 , the family business was reborn , a long way from Iran , in Buford , Georgia in the United States . Irvani called his new enterprise `` Okabashi '' in honor of the Japanese practice of reflexology and , as the company 's website states their shoes have : `` tiny massaging beads are strategically placed across the foot-bed of each shoe to stimulate different areas of the sole . '' Having just celebrated the company 's 25th anniversary of manufacturing in the U.S. , Irvani says his team is really proud to have manufactured 100 % of their shoes domestically . To date , Irvani 's company has sold over 30-million pairs of the inexpensive ergonomic sandals . Irvani believes too many companies have switched to importing goods , but it 's not a trend he 's about to start following . `` Our core competency is in manufacturing and what we like to do is design and manufacture really comfortable shoes and I think we do that just as well in the U.S. than doing it overseas . '' Two-billion pairs of footwear are sold each year in the United States with 99 % of them made overseas . Jason Boswell , vice president of sales for Okabashi credits Irvani for bucking that trend . `` While other companies send their operations overseas and cut corners on quality , Bahman insists on keeping our operations domestic and instead of lowering quality actually increasing it , '' Boswell said . Irvani 's factory employs around 200 workers that produce up to 20,000 pairs of shoes each day , with his sandals selling for as little as $ 12 . `` Our shoes get to the American consumer after traveling an average of 800 miles , '' Irvani said , `` compared to Chinese shoes which can travel 12,000 miles on average . '' The sandals are 100 % recyclable and made of up to 25 % recycled material . All the materials Okabashi use are entirely recyclable , Irvani says . `` Very few shoes , by the way , are recyclable -- the leather shoes one wears for example . There are a lot of components going into the shoes so you have to undo them and that process of splitting them up is incredibly time consuming and just not practical . Our shoes are primarily one material , '' he said . The company also takes great pains to ensure a zero waste manufacturing process . `` Obviously not everything comes out beautiful and perfect so we end up with scrap or process waste or returns from customers , '' said Brad Laporte , vice president of manufacturing . The company encourages their customers to return their worn out sandals where they are cleaned , ground up and mixed with the new plastic . The future for Bahman Irvani 's company looks bright despite the recent recession -- Okabashi export to 16 countries , including Asia , Laporte says . Irvani has no plans for retirement . His father worked well into his 80s and his son -- 28-year-old third generation shoemaker Hadi -- has taken a more active role in his beloved company . Irvani smiles when asked his thoughts on achieving the American dream . `` The American dream is filled with many sleepless nights , '' he said .
Okabashi footwear lets you send your old shoes back to be recycled . All new shoes are made with up to 25 % recycled material . The company also has a program called the “Shoe for Life” that allows customers who buy their products in bulk and donate them to charity, they can get a discount on future purchases of those