Our Story

PAHTIA from the Nahuatl word to heal.

We’re Paulina and Anaid. Mexican-American sisters who somehow ended up building something together. We didn’t set out to build a shoe brand.

We set out to find a sandal we actually wanted to wear.

It was 2023. Paulina was heading to Lollapalooza and spent weeks searching for something fun, elevated, and comfortable enough to wear all day without her feet paying for it later. She couldn’t find it. So she called her sister.

Paulina handles the designs, creative direction, and vision. Anaid handles operations and logistics. We manufacture in Mexico because our heritage is there, our roots are there, and the people and makers we trust are there.

We’d spent years accepting shoes that looked beautiful but hurt. Backup flats in the bag. Sore feet after festivals. Carrying band-aids just in case.  Walking home barefoot holding our shoes in our hands.

We called it normal.

We decided it wasn’t.

 Because we remember running as kids without a single thought about our feet. No backup shoes. No band-aids.

Just free.

We want that feeling back.

 Imagine dancing all night. Walking for hours. Traveling for days. Completely present. No backup plan. Just present.

That’s what born free. still free. means to us. And that’s what we built PAHTIA for.

still free

Paulina & Anaid