Cobian Sandals was built on a generational heritage of sandal making by sibling co-founders John and Claudia Cobian. They drew upon their Hispanic family roots in Guadalajara, Mexico to learn the craftsmanship of sandal design and manufacturing. The surf culture in the early 1980’s created a burgeoning demand for sandals in the United States. Inspired by the growing market opportunity, Cobian made a mission to not only create the best sandals for men, women and children but to serve as a platform to support others. Cobian believes that “Every Step Matters” and supports sustainability and partners with various foundations worldwide that support children, the surf community, and the environment.
HES Solar designed and installed a 59.04-kilowatt (kW) SunPower Helix solar system across the rooftop of Cobian’s corporate headquarters. The fully-integrated system is expected to save Cobian $24,044 in the first year of the system’s operation, thanks in part to SunPower’s intelligent storage software which can optimize savings with demand response and energy arbitrage. The investment is expected to pay for itself in just 2.1 years and return an estimated $966,271 in savings over the first 25 years. Now that’s a step in the right direction!
“The decision to go solar was based on multiple factors, long term cost savings and clean energy was what we wanted, and there was a nice tax write off. When you add all of those factors together it was a no brainer, and we get so much sunlight here that it keeps producing every day. A friend of mine is an engineer and did a lot of research and he recommended HES Solar. We outsourced our research and compared bids and chose HES Solar, they met our requirements, they’re a very professional company and have the best equipment and best SunPower panels.“
John Cobian, GM, Cobian Sandals
The residential-only entity HES Solar has redefined its scope and has narrowed its focus to home solar service and home battery service. The impact of 2023 California regulations to home solar projects has required this company truncation; we regret the elimination of new home energy installations from our offerings. HES Solar now concentrates on supporting existing systems with maintenance and repair services for HES Solar and non-HES Solar systems and remains available for workmanship warranty work on qualified HES Solar systems.
For commercial solar and commercial energy storage design, installation, service, and O&M offerings, please visit the HES Renewables website hesrenewables.com.
A note on the state of California residential solar: The residential solar industry has faced significant financial hurdles in the last few years as a direct result of hostile policy, most notably NEM 3.0. Our primary trade partner, SunPower, went into Chapter 11 in August, 2024, and a majority of other solar companies, large and small, have been forced to close, leave California, or restructure. We are glad to remain available as a home energy service group to support our customers and provide maintenance and repair for home systems that have been orphaned by other company closures.
We recognize your frustration with this news and never intended for our beloved 24-year-old residential solar business to curtail its offerings.