Alumnus and student launch sock line

As the weather heats up, athletes and couch potatoes alike are facing a common fear: sweaty socks.

Two members of the Trojan family are working to curb this inconvenience by creating a line of odor-repelling socks.

Dubbed the SilverAir Sock, the foot accessories were developed by USC alumnus Sam Mazumdar, a 2011 Marshall graduate, and current USC undergraduate student, Waiz Rahim, a junior majoring in industrial and systems engineering.

The socks are made from silver and Merino wool. Mazumdar and Rahim selected wool as the primary material because it has odor-resistant qualities and can sustain long periods of activity.

“We tried and tested a ton of materials and selected the finest Merino wool for its ability to wick moisture and regulate temperature,” Mazumdar said. “It’s a custom blend that’s unique to our product and is guaranteed to keep your feet super comfortable and happy.”

The company was funded through the crowdsourcing website Kickstarter. Within three hours of launching their odor-repelling socks, Mazumdar and Rahim received more than half of their target Kickstarter goal of $35,000 to launch the SilverAir Sock. They currently have raised nearly $70,000.

The sock is being introduced through their company Y Athletics. the idea for the company came from an idea Mazumdar had to create an athletic apparel brand that used the best products in every category. With that concept, Rahim used his marketing knowledge to spread the word about the company.

In addition to the SilverAir Sock, Y Athletics also sells its odor-repelling SilverAir shirt, which was launched in 2013. The company’s SilverAir shirts have been sold on its website and used by thousands of customers in all 50 states and more than 70 different countries. Through the popularity of their shirts, Mazumdar and Rahim were inspired to create the sock version of the product line.

“We love and wear our shirts every day, and they’re so popular that we have a difficult time keeping up with their demand,” Mazumdar said. “It just made sense to be able to offer the same performance in another piece of clothing that would benefit from the convenience.”

Now, they hope to let investors know that the socks are designed to be versatile and perfect for any situation, whether it be exercising or going out.

In terms of development, Mazumdar and Rahim have been working with their sock manufacturer for almost a year to test dozens of prototypes and designs before they came up with their final product to demonstrate to potential backers. Different athletic backers heavily tested their socks over a series of nine months in order for Mazumdar and Rahim to engineer a better odor-eliminating product.

“Our goal is to get as many people as we can get to experience this product because you don’t realize how amazing it is until you’ve used it. It makes living easier,” Mazumdar said.

Despite exceeding their financial goal, Mazumdar and Rahim are still accepting backers for their SilverAir Sock campaign on Kickstarter until May 2015. The company expects to start sourcing and producing the socks in June and shipping them to potential customers by August 2015.