The Marine Corps is developing new footwear after it found that a significant percentage of boots Marines were buying had quality issues, resulting in Marine Corps Exchange stores having to return nearly one-quarter of its boot stocks to the manufacturer in at least one case.
The Optional Boot Program is meant to quickly get high-quality boots to Marines through inspections, fleet feedback, real-world testing and industry competition after COVID-era supply chain issues began rattling quality and inflating prices starting years ago.
