gandys flip flop brothers
Ten years after the Boxing Day tsunami, Rob Forkan tells Emily Horton how he and his brother Paul have turned personal tragedy into success
When you think of flip flops, the casual footwear synonymous with tropical climes, beach holidays and surfer dudes, Surrey doesn't exactly spring to mind. But Rob and Paul Forkan, two brothers from Purley who survived the devastating Boxing Day tsunami in Sri Lanka in 2004, are securing Surrey's slice of flip flop action.
Determined to forge something positive out of the disaster which claimed the lives of their parents, the Forkans have created a British flip flop company, endorsed by the likes of Hollywood actress Jessica Alba, Sir Richard Branson and One Direction’s Niall Horan.
They have named their brand Gandys, after that most famous wearer of the humble shoe – Mahatma Gandhi.
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As I speak to Rob, the older sibling, at Gandys headquarters in Southfields, south west London, it comes as no surprise that the great Indian humanitarian is an inspiration, as this is an enterprise with ambitious philanthropic plans.
The brothers have established a foundation called Gandys Orphans for Orphans, which supports disadvantaged youth across the world. Ten per cent of every flip flop sale is donated to the foundation which has built its first kids’ campus, in Sri Lanka, near where the Forkans were staying when the tidal wave hit, exactly 10 years ago.
The pair are marking the 10th anniversary with a book, Tsunami Kids: Our Journey from Survival to Success.
As well as giving a harrowing account of that fateful day, it tells the story of the brothers’ unusual upbringing.
Born in 1987 and raised in the family home on Purley’s Meadow Road, Rob was 13 when his parents, Kevin and Sandra, decided to sell up and move to India with their four youngest children.
Kevin Forkan had travelled the world as a young man, before returning home to run a Ford franchise in Mitcham. Later he created a successful social enterprise with Sandra, selling discount clothing to community organisations. But the travel bug never left him. He and Sandra went on an initial trip to Goa, fell in love with the country and relocated the family to India in 2000.
Gandys: Surrey Downs Magazine January 2015
As Rob recalls in the book, the experience was life-changing. They travelled around the country and, instead of sheltering their offspring from the extreme poverty, Kevin and Sandra took their kids to help in children's homes and slums.
At first Rob was shocked by what he encountered but, he says, he went on to find “...a sense of purpose and a desire to try and do something to help, no matter how small.”
He continues, “At home, our friends were preoccupied with the latest gadgets or what toys they were getting for Christmas. They had their priorities the wrong way round.”
That said, the Forkans still took time out from their voluntary work to have fun as a family and Christmas 2004 found them holidaying in Weligama, a coastal town on Sri Lanka’s southernmost tip. They were just waking up on Boxing Day when an earthquake in Indonesia – measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale – caused a gigantic surge of water to travel across the Indian Ocean and decimate the country.
Rob and Paul managed to scramble above the water, onto the roof of their beach bungalow. But their parents were not so fortunate. Having lifted their youngest children, Rosie and Mattie, to safety, they became two of some 300,000 people who died that day across 14 countries bordering the affected area.
It left the four siblings, (Rob the eldest at 17 and Rosie just 8), bereft, homeless, orphaned – and some 250km from Colombo and the airport home.
Rob is understandably reluctant to speak about the day he lost his parents, saying that the book was a means of putting the story into the public domain without having to forever recount it.
“We try and avoid talking about it. That might seem crazy, but we didn’t start with our story when we established Gandys. Then people found out about it and thought it so powerful and inspiring, that we began to feel that it was worth sharing, albeit once, and in our own words.”
The book makes for emotional reading; the reunion with their sister Rosie brings a lump to the throat. As does Rob’s recollection of the journey back to the UK – starting with a long two and a half day trek to Colombo and the British embassy with no money, no possessions and relying entirely on the kindness of strangers.
Guildford Magazine June 2015
When they did arrive back in the UK, they went to live with their older sister, Marie, in Farnborough. Adjusting to their new lives back in England without their parents was undoubtedly difficult, as was adapting to British education after so long. The years passed and Rob found work at the CV Library, a Hampshire based company, but he always planned to establish his own business one day.
In 2011, he had the idea for Gandys flip-flops and, when Paul returned from travelling in Australia, he joined Rob in Guildford, where he was then based, and the pair set about making the footwear brand a reality.
Now their flip flops have a worldwide following, and the Gandys team is based in a London office that was opened by Mayor Boris Johnson last year.
The brothers’ hard work has taken them to Buckingham Palace where they have been recognised as exceptional young leaders by the Queen, and to Downing Street to meet the Prime Minister. That their products are proving such a hit is cause for celebration, but the brothers are not content to rest on their laurels.
“I wouldn't say it's a success yet, we have a long way to go,” says Rob, adding, “Maybe, because of what we have seen in life, we never take anything for granted.”
The siblings are also intent on honouring their commitment to charity work, a quality that was so carefully nurtured in the boys by their parents.
paul forkan gandys flip flops
To coincide with the anniversary of the tsunami, Rob and Paul are heading to Sri Lanka to officially open the Orphans for Orphans kids’ centre. It will house a school, a medical surgery, and be a place where underprivileged children can go for food. The trip, called Gandys Go Full Circle, will also see the brothers take part in a 150km row with locals along the coast affected by the tsunami.
How does Rob feel about anniversary?
“It’s emotional to think it has been 10 years,” he says softly, quickly adding,“We set up Gandys to create something positive from that negative siutation.”
The brothers are certainly doing that, and I can’t help thinking how proud their late parents would have been.
For more information visit gandyslondon.com
Check out another one of our great interviews, like our recent conversation with Gareth Gates about his musical theatre career and coconuts
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