Why Not As

What Why Not As does

Why Not AS is a privately held Norwegian footwear and accessories distributor, established in 2003 and headquartered in Oslo at Rolf Wickstrøms vei 15. The company operates as an authorized Norwegian representative for more than ten international brands across footwear, work-gear, insoles, and technical gadgets — including Birkenstock, Blundstone, Crocs, TOMS, Rockport, Mechanix Wear, SOLE, OrthoFeet, Joya, Bearpaw, and its own InspectorGadgets line (InspectorCam inspection camera, SmartPump and SmartPump Mini electric pumps). It serves two distinct customer groups: B2B dealers and retailers (shoe stores, work-wear outlets, industrial suppliers) through a dedicated wholesale portal, and Norwegian private consumers through direct-to-consumer e-commerce.

The business runs on a Shopify-based e-commerce platform that powers both the consumer-facing storefront (whynot.no, plus brand-specific sites shooz.no, blundstone.no, and inspectorgadgets.no) and the B2B dealer login portal (whynot-lager.com). Revenue is generated through wholesale distribution of footwear and accessories — purchasing inventory from brand owners and reselling to Norwegian retailers (B2B) and end consumers (B2C). Consumer pricing is listed in NOK across categories (e.g., SOLE insoles 599 NOK, Crocs up to 899 NOK, Birkenstock up to 1,499 NOK, Rockport up to 1,899 NOK, Blundstone up to 3,299 NOK), while B2B pricing is gated behind account login. Marketing is limited to brand-specific Instagram accounts, with no broader digital marketing program disclosed.

The firm is small (6 employees) and privately held with no disclosed external investors. Operations are domestic to Norway, with stated coverage of footwear, sport, fashion, health, industry (B2B), and defense channels. The team combines sales/marketing (Otto R. Holmen), administration/finance/logistics (Erik R. Solheim), a Digital Developer (Lukas L. Paley), a Marketing Manager (Christina Melnyk), and warehouse staff — indicating a lean operating model focused on distribution execution rather than technology development. No AI/ML capabilities, proprietary software products, or technology IP are associated with the business.

Name

Why Not As

Legal name

Why Not AS

Website

https://whynot.no

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Why Not AS is a privately held Norwegian footwear and accessories distributor, founded in 2003, representing 10+ international brands (Birkenstock, Blundstone, Crocs, Mechanix Wear, Joya, InspectorGadgets, others) to Norwegian B2B dealers via a trade portal and to consumers via Shopify-based D2C storefronts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Footwear Distribution

NAICS

Shoe Retailers (4582), Footwear Merchant Wholesalers (42434)

SIC

Retail-Shoe Stores (5661), Wholesale-Apparel, Piece Goods & Notions (5130)

akta.pro primary industry

Footwear Wholesale (CRAOADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Footwear Outlet & Off-Price Retail (CRAAADAI), Footwear Accessories & Care Retail (Insoles, Laces, Shoe Care) (CRAAADAL)

Keywords

• Footwear distribution
• Shoe wholesale
• Work safety gloves
• Orthopaedic footwear
• B2B dealer portal

Headquarters

HQ city

Oslo

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Wholesale distribution of footwear and accessories: Acts as the official Norwegian distributor for multiple international footwear and work-gear brands, purchasing inventory and selling onward to B2B retailers (shoe stores, work-wear outlets) and directly to consumers via its own e-commerce sites.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Why Not AS is a Norwegian shoe distributor that purchases inventory from international footwear and work-gear brands and sells onward to two distinct customer groups: B2B dealers (shoe retailers, work-wear distributors, industrial suppliers) through a dedicated dealer portal, and B2C private consumers through its own Shopify-based e-commerce storefronts. Its portfolio covers comfort footwear, orthopaedic shoes, work-safety gloves, and consumer technical gadgets.

Product overview

Why Not AS is a Norwegian shoe distributor established in 2003 that represents strong international footwear and accessory brands. The company operates a multi-brand portfolio through multiple sales channels: a B2B dealer portal (whynot-lager.com) for business customers, a consumer-facing online store (shooz.no), and brand-specific websites including Blundstone.no and Inspectorgadgets.no. The product portfolio spans 10+ distributed brands across multiple categories: Birkenstock (health-promoting footwear), Blundstone (Australian boots), Crocs ( Croslite foam shoes), TOMS (lifestyle footwear), Rockport (comfort dress shoes), Mechanix Wear (work gloves and safety equipment), SOLE (foot insoles), OrthoFeet (orthopaedic footwear), Joya (Swiss wellness footwear with proprietary FOREVERFOAM technology), and InspectorGadgets (smart technical tools including inspection cameras and electric air pumps). The company also distributes Bearpaw (sheepskin slippers) and operates across footwear, sport, fashion, health, industry (B2B), and defence distribution channels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Birkenstock

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Footway Group AB: Swedish-listed online footwear retailer carrying multiple international brands; comparable as a Nordic multi-brand footwear operator pursuing D2C alongside wholesale relationships.
• Nilson Group AB: Sweden-based multi-brand footwear retailer and distributor operating physical stores plus e-commerce across the Nordics — directly comparable to Why Not AS's multi-brand B2B/B2C distribution model.
• Eurobrands Scandinavia: Scandinavian exclusive brand distributor representing international labels in the Nordics — analogous business model to Why Not AS's authorized Norwegian distribution rights for footwear and work-gear brands.

Regional players

• Brilliance United Group: Scandinavian brand operator that runs local-country sites and exclusive distribution for international brands — analogous business model of operating branded regional storefronts on behalf of foreign principals.
• Stadium AB: Swedish multi-brand sports and footwear retailer with both physical and online channels; comparable in multi-brand distribution and B2B/B2C retail operations, although operating only in Sweden rather than Norway.
• XXL ASA: Norwegian multi-brand sports and outdoor retailer with combined retail and wholesale activity; shares Why Not AS's Norwegian geography and multi-brand distribution logic, but focuses on sports/outdoor categories.

Broad incumbents

• Skechers USA Inc. Global comfort/casual footwear brand; comparable as one of the major international brand principals whose distribution rights in Scandinavia are contested among distributors like Why Not AS.
• Ecco Sko A/S: Danish footwear manufacturer-retailer with global reach; serves a similar comfort/wellness footwear market but operates as an integrated brand owner rather than a multi-brand distributor.
• Deichmann SE: Europe's largest footwear retailer with multi-brand operations across many EU markets; comparable as a large incumbent multi-brand footwear distribution and retail operator.
• Zalando SE: Europe-leading online fashion and footwear platform selling many international footwear brands directly to Nordic consumers — a structural channel-competing incumbent to Why Not AS's D2C storefronts.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/whynotas
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/why-not-as

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Why Not As