Emergency shoes let ladies obey the code

You're drunk (maybe), tired (probably) and your feet are killing you.

Suddenly, walking through a casino barefoot doesn't seem like such a bad idea. In fact, it sounds like the best idea you've ever had at the moment.

Only, for local ladies, and I do mean the ones born and raised here, that's not an option. It's some kind of code you sign when you come out of the womb where you pledge not to walk through a casino without your shoes on. And if you do, you lose your Vegas card.

And for our fair visitors, let's just say this now. Don't do it. Come prepared. Inevitably, your feet are going to hurt at some point if you've been dancing all night on your stilettos. It's just a law of nature.

Thankfully, Ashley Ross and Lindsay Klimitz are here to save the day.

Ross, a Las Vegas native, met Klimitz, who hails from Toronto, three years ago at a mutual friend's birthday party. The new duo started going to nightclubs together, and Klimitz would take her shoes off at the end of the night and make that walk of shame through the casinos barefoot. (To reiterate, Vegas ladies don't do that.)

Ross, being from here, said she'd always tell her friend not to do the unthinkable.

"I had to teach her," Ross remembered.

Separately, both women wanted to start businesses. While eating at Panera one day, they stumbled on to an idea that would serve as their new enterprise, and save other, nonlocal ladies from the faux pas.

First, they thought of a sandal stand from which they would peddle sandals to damsels in dis-dress. But, they quickly nixed that idea when they realized they'd have to staff the stands almost 24-7.

What they needed was a vending machine.

The women installed their first Rollasole vending machine at Vanity Nightclub inside the Hard Rock Hotel. Since that club is soon closing, they're in negotiations now to determine its future.

Soon after the first, the foldable ballet flat-filled vending machines were installed in two places at the Grand Canal Shoppes inside The Venetian and one in Colony Nightclub in Los Angeles. Soon, there will be one inside Gallery Nightclub.

Each pair costs $20, cash only, and comes in a small tin, about the size of a small Pringles can.

Each week, between 30 and 50 pairs are sold at each location.

"It's not just for when their feet hurt. It's also a novelty," Ross said.

Klimitz added, "They're also great for travel."

The shoes also can be found in the celebrity gifting suite at the Golden Globes, with all of the shoes inside the gold machine also being gold in color.

"There was actually a line for them last year," said Klimitz.

They also offer the shoes online, which is where they do a large wedding-based business and they sell a deluxe version of the Rollasole for long-term wear.

Recently, they sold 350 pairs to a bride who wanted them as favors.

"We can't keep those on the shelves long enough," Klimitz said.

And although they're progressing right along with their venture, the duo said it's a challenge convincing venues to let them place an emergency footwear machine.

"It's so bizarre to a lot of people, the thought of it," Klimitz said.

But, the two keep marketing their product, and are looking ahead to the day when their machines are all over the Vegas Strip and in other party-centric locales, like New York and Miami.

"We're living our dream. That's probably been the best part," Ross said.

Contact reporter Laura Carroll at lcarroll@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4588.