easons later evolved into identifying a frustrating but relatable experience among athletes, healthcare professionals and service industry workers.  Inside Retail connected with the determined founder to learn more about how he developed a company that regularly generates $30,000 a day in sales and has captured the attention of major league athletes such as American football player Terrell Owens, as well as working professionals, including nurses. From college athlete to brand founder Stand+, as we know the brand today for its array of brightly colored, orthopaedic-focused footwear styles, including clogs and slides, has come a long way from Gregg’s original focus on the footwear industry. Both the product range and the brand name have gone through several iterations. But let’s rewind a bit. As Gregg told Inside Retail, his interest in building a footwear business stemmed from his own health-related issues. “I was a pretty serious athlete all through college, so I had a lot of wear and tear on my body,” he said. “After college, I ended up working in sports and entertainment at an agency called Creative Artists Agency (CAA), working in the mail room for 16 hours a day, six days a week, on concrete floors in dress shoes. Basically, I was doing half a marathon a day, and my knees, back, and joints were getting crushed.” Gregg sought a solution but, unable to find anything suitable on the market, decided to take matters into his own hands. After some research, Gregg connected with a shoe cobbler based in Los Angeles. Following discussions about the style of shoe he wanted to create, the cobbler informed him it would cost roughly $1,800 to make a dress shoe he could comfortably work in. Unable to afford a custom pair, Gregg proposed a barter arrangement. In his limited free time, he volunteered at the cobbler’s shop in exchange for learning about the footwear design process. Over the next four months, Gregg became an apprentice shoe cobbler on weekends and days off. Through that process, he learned traditional footwear construction techniques. “One thing that stuck out to me is that with almost every major brand that’s been around for a while, there are hundreds of years of craftsmanship, but also years of unchanged design. A lot has changed in the last few hundred years and, just like I don’t want to sleep on a mattress designed 200 years ago, I don’t want to walk in a shoe designed that long ago. “Because I got to see how it was made and was able to ask a lot of naive questions, which I’m sure he [the cobbler] was groaning about, I ended up taking the classic shoe materials, putting my spin on them and creating a dress shoe that flexed and breathed and felt like socks.” While the original plan was simply to create a comfortable pair of shoes for work, Gregg soon began attracting attention from high-profile people in the media industry who noticed the shoes he was wearing. That attention highlighted an opportunity in the market and eventually led to the launch of his footwear brand, Rob McAllan, a name inspired by the men in his family. One of those men was Gregg’s great-grandfather, a World War II veteran and medical commander for the Allied forces who had previously worked as a shoe salesman in Shanghai. Learning more about his family history further motivated Gregg to build the business the right way. As Gregg told Inside Retail: “There used to be a time when people put their head down and took that extra step, and they did the hard thing to fight for something.” From designer footwear to helping healthcare heroes The journey to launching Rob McAllan – and later Gales, which was rebranded as Stand+ in mid-2024 – was not easy. Gregg recalled that nearly everything that could go wrong did go wrong, from suppliers overcharging for materials to substituting lower-quality alternatives. These issues created costly setbacks both financially and operationally. “From my experience, this was a very difficult industry to get into as the new person without anybody guiding the way. So I ended up learning lessons on my own dime, in my own time, which led to me running out of money and having $412 left in my bank account. “I ended up taking 19 independent contracting jobs in a year, which I would not wish on my worst enemy. While the tax filing was a nightmare, I saved enough money to get back on my feet, have some extra cash and go all in on the business.” Rob McAllan’s footwear was later featured in publications such as GQ and worn by celebrities, including musician Jason Derulo. Despite that success, Gregg began questioning his purpose as an entrepreneur. “I was making nice-looking dress shoes that are a little more comfortable for people with means, which is great. But I was struggling to figure out where I could put my time and energy best and where I could really make the biggest impact.” The answer came through two contrasting experiences. While raising funds for Rob McAllan, Gregg was recruited by GeistM as head of business development. The role helped him develop e-commerce expertise while assisting the company’s rapid expansion. “In four years, the company went from being a startup to generating five billion in sales across 250 brands, including Casper, Warby Parker and HelloFresh. We were able to build the company in very rapid succession to an incredible scale.” Then the pandemic arrived, and a close family member became seriously ill with Covid. A nurse went above and beyond to help save the family member’s life using a new type of ventilator. As a gesture of gratitude, Gregg offered a financial reward, which she declined. Instead, she directed him toward a nurses’ group, to which he made a sizable donation. Still, he wanted to do more. Gregg quit his day job and became a full-time healthcare volunteer. Over the following 18 months, he searched for ways to assist nurses and other medical professionals who were overworked and physically exhausted during the pandemic. Eventually, he decided to pivot his footwear business toward supporting healthcare professionals and other workers who spend long hours on their feet, including bartenders, chefs and athletes. “Half the world’s population stands for a living, but the footwear industry has not been built for them. “I’m very proud to say that we’re among the first [footwear brands] to be medically approved and to be HSA- and FSA-eligible. We’re the first shoe brand firmly focused on supporting the people behind the scenes who make the world go around and doing it in a way that makes them feel proud about the jobs they do and love the shoes they wear to work.” In 2020, the company was named Gales, inspired by Florence Nightingale, before being rebranded as Stand+ to appeal to a broader audience beyond healthcare workers. What’s next for Stand+ During his time volunteering and building the second iteration of the brand, Gregg received a compliment that has stayed with him. “I don’t see you as someone who solves problems. I see you as someone who turns problems into greatness.” Gregg took the comment to heart and built a brand that aims to improve the lives of people experiencing daily pain while also delivering strong financial results. The founder disclosed that, as of December 2025, Stand+ had reached EBITDA profitability. Over the past year, the brand experienced a 113 per cent increase in direct-to-consumer Shopify sales and a 100 per cent year-over-year increase in top-line revenue. While those figures are impressive for any brand, particularly one only six years old, Gregg and his team are taking a measured approach to growth, including their strategy for brick-and-mortar retail. “Team sales is currently one of our biggest focus areas because it’s relatively easy for us to send a pair for trial or show up on site for testing. “Eventually, we’ll lean into brick-and-mortar if consumers look for us there. We’re still a relatively new brand and not yet a household name. I don’t believe the challenge is getting our shoes into stores, but getting them off the shelves once they’re there. “I want to get to the point where consumers are coming into stores asking for us by name. Once they do, then we’ll pull the trigger. We’re a very lean team with one other employee, and we sell out faster than we can restock. Physical retail requires a completely different skill set, so we’ll build a team specifically around retail.” At present, Stand+ has begun testing physical retail through pilot programs with several independent retailers, which Gregg said have performed well. “In the very near future, my milestone is to get to at least $10 million in annual sales before we start looking more seriously at physical retail.” Further reading: How Alissa Miky harnessed red algae to create functional beverage brand Oomee