Top 20 Under 40- Jesse and Carly Burnett

Shalom Life is proud to present our 2nd annual ”Top 20 Under 40” list. This list encompasses 20 individuals of diverse occupations and backgrounds from businessmen and businesswomen and innovative entrepreneurs, to philanthropists, entertainers, doctors and more, the list places a spotlight on the myriad of talented, creative and passionate Jews, all under 40, who call Canada home.

Top 20 Under 40- Jesse and Carly Burnett

Age: 31

Husband and wife team, Jesse and Carly Burnett, are the founders of TKEES- a line of upscale flip flops billed as “cosmetics for your feet”.

Inspired by their love of the beach, Jesse and Carly came up with the idea for TKEES while vacationing in St. Barthelemy.

“The idea of a pair of flip-flops so minimal that the difference between them on and off was almost indiscernible (almost like that thin layer of sand you have on your feet after coming out of the ocean). Meanwhile, we were sitting on the beach and there was a Tiki hut, we jokingly toyed with the idea of calling the flip-flops TIKIS,” Jesse explains.

When it finally came down to naming their company, they decided to go with a different spelling because it was graphically more appealing.

The couple were introduced by a mutual friend 8 years ago. Jesse shares that it was “love at first sight.” Since their initial meeting, they have been inseparable, so going into business together was the obvious next step.

Carly comes from a graphic design background, while Jesse’s experience was in business and real estate. This made their roles within the company clear right from the start.

“Carly is the Creative Director of TKEES and I am CEO. Naturally, Carly deals with more of the creative side and, I, the business side, but as a team, we always come together in the end to finalize things,” Jesse says.

So what exactly are “cosmetics for your feet”?

“We were looking for a cute way to incorporate the idea of color into our line. Initially, the TKEES line consisted of only 6 different nude colored flip-flops. Carly and I discussed different ways and categories to encapsulate TKEES colors. One day we drew the parallel between nude colored tones and cosmetic foundations, the idea grew from there,” Jesse explains.

The TKEES collection now features dozens of colours, all categorized by a cosmetic product; liners, foundations, highlighters, shadows, blushes, glosses, creams, polishes, and lip glosses.

Popular throughout North America, TKEES are extremely popular in Hollywood. Celebrities including Paris Hilton, Jessica Alba, Angelina Jolie, and Vanessa Hudgens have been photographed wearing them.

2012 is a big year for TKEES. This spring, the company is launching its first Kids line.

“Kids Launches in Spring '12. This is really exciting and we've gotten amazing feedback so far.“

Carly and Jesse have an adorable son named Jensen. Perhaps their new kids line was inspired by him?

“We love him more than anything! We are launching our kids line for girls this Spring!”

Well, I guess Jensen won’t be wearing TKEES this spring, but at the rate the company’s growing, I expect a boys line will be just around the corner.

To find out more info about TKEES or to grab a few pairs for the summer, visit www.tkees.com

Shalom Life is currently searching for the best and brightest Jews under 40 in New York who have gained recognition in business, entertainment, philanthropy, technology and more. Please send suggestions to top20NY@shalomlife.com