Sole Inspiration: New nonprofit provides shoes for student athletes - Record-Courier |
- Sole Inspiration: New nonprofit provides shoes for student athletes - Record-Courier
- Cariuma's Ibi shoes are totally carbon neutral - Fast Company
- Steph scores 32 points in shoes designed by daughter Riley - NBCSports.com
- Nordstrom’s Grand NYC Opening: Footwear on 3 Floors, Louboutin & Nike Shops + a Shoe Bar - Footwear News
| Sole Inspiration: New nonprofit provides shoes for student athletes - Record-Courier Posted: 21 Oct 2019 03:41 AM PDT Five years ago, Matt Wise walked barefoot out of a seventh-grade basketball game. His oldest son Isaiah was playing a scrimmage game against an East Canton team, and Wise was blown away by an opposing player's advanced skill set. "This kid was really good, but his shoes were destroyed. After the scrimmage, we were talking to him, telling him he played really well, and I asked what size shoes he wore. He said 13, which is surprising because he was a seventh-grader. It's the same as me, and I said, 'Do you want my shoes?'" Matt said. The player left the game with Matt's Nike Kyrie 1s that cost well over $100, and Matt left with a feeling that he could do more. Since that day, Matt and his three sons — Waterloo junior Isaiah, 17; freshman Ryan, 15, and seventh-grader Drew, 12 — have given more than 10 pairs of shoes to student athletes in need and recently launched a website for their newly established nonprofit, Sole Inspiration, which hopes to donate one to two brand new pairs of shoes a month. Already the nonprofit has collected more than $4,000, significantly more than they had budgeted for the entire year. "We're blown away by the response. It shows that people really understand there's a need," said secretary and treasurer Maribeth Graham of Massillon, who serves as a board member with Matt and Holly Davis of Atlanta. It is also significantly more than the Wises were able to collect in the five years since Matt took off that first pair of shoes. After that initial donation, the Wises went home to Randolph and created a Kicks Jar, a decorated clay pot where they kept spare change and left over birthday money and allowances that would ultimately pay for new athletic shoes for young athletes in need. Sometimes, like that first donation, Matt would give a student shoes out of his personal collection. "Every time I had leftover money from spending it on something or any time I have left over money, I just put it in the jar. It felt pretty good," Drew said. When there was enough money in the jar, the Wises would connect with kids in need, ask them about their current shoes, their shoe size and their dream shoes. "Next time we saw them, we'd just give them the shoes we talked about. Low key, no fanfare, but we helped a few kids that way and the more we saw their enjoyment, we started thinking we could do it more," Matt said. With an idea in place but little know-how, Matt reached out to Graham, who serves on a number of other nonprofit boards, for guidance. "This really did start with just helping with the logo. But getting to know Matt and the kids more and understanding the mission, I knew it was something I wanted to help with. I grew up playing sports, and [helping kids] is something I've always been passionate about, but knowing how passionate they were made me want to help," Graham said. Two weeks ago, they gave out Sole Inspiration's first official shoe donation, a pair of Nike Air Max 97s wrapped in a Sole Inspiration branded backpack, to a Waterloo sixth-grader. "It's been awesome just to see how we started from giving away shoes at basketball tournaments and now how we've grown," said Isaiah, who promotes the nonprofit in school and on social media with his brothers. "I wanted this to be something I could start and they could take and run with later in life. I could do the legwork and they could build it up and let it go with them into the future," Matt said. Sole Inspiration is currently accepting applications for October, and applications are available at their website, soleinspiration.org. To be eligible, students must be in fourth to 12th grade, participate in an organized sport and show financial need. For each month, the application deadline is the 15th. The nonprofit is also accepting monetary donations through its website, which also has links to its social media accounts, or through Amazon Smile. They do not accept shoe donations because they are unable to handle the inventory and also because they want the athletes to receive the exact pair of shoes he or she wants. Reporter Krista S. Kano can be reached at 330-541-9416, kkano@recordpub.com or on Twitter @KristaKanoRCedu.  |
| Cariuma's Ibi shoes are totally carbon neutral - Fast Company Posted: 21 Oct 2019 04:00 AM PDT Other brands "are mostly huge corporations with massive production that are not really focused on caring about the environment as a whole or even best practices for people involved . . . in mass production," says Fernando Porto, Cariuma's Brazil-based cofounder and chief creative officer, who decided to leave a job at a larger company two years ago to explore the idea of making shoes differently. "For us, it became clear that our angle would be trying to bring the only sneaker brand that would be good-looking, crazy comfortable, and consciously made."  The new shoe is called the Ibi and retails for $98. Its upper part is knitted from a blend of bamboo and recycled plastic. The company developed a new way to work with bamboo, which is typically turned into fiber through a harsh process that involves dissolving the treelike material with a toxic chemical that can endanger workers and pollute the environment near the factory. Cariuma's process instead heats up the bamboo to turn it into powdered charcoal; mixing that powder with recycled PET plastic makes it possible to create a yarn that can be used to make the shoes. (Some other shoe companies use recycled plastic alone to knit their products.) As the bamboo grows, it sequesters carbon, making it carbon neutral as a material. When bamboo is harvested, it doesn't kill the plant, which continues to grow and sequester more carbon.  As with other shoes that are knit—like the Flyknit sneakers that Nike pioneered in 2012—using yarn instead of larger pieces of fabric reduces waste. The shoe's upper is made from only three pieces, making the manufacturing process simpler than a traditional shoe and saving energy. "Two-thirds of the carbon emissions in the [traditional] shoe process come from manufacturing," says Porto. "So if you don't think about this in the design process while you're developing the product, you won't be able to fix it later." Any remaining emissions, including the emissions from shipping the product to customers, are offset through projects including protecting part of the Amazon rainforest.  Since a large part of the environmental impact of fashion stems from the fact that apparel and accessories are often thrown out after only a few uses, the company wanted to make shoes that would last as long as possible. Elements of the design, including the way the sole is stitched to the rest of the shoe, make it more durable. Using a classic aesthetic instead of chasing trends also means that consumers are more likely to keep wearing the shoes. "Something we ask in our sustainable design ethos is, 'Is this aesthetic still going to be pleasant to your eyes 20, 30 years later?'" says Porto. "If it's not, we shouldn't go for it." The shoes are also made in a Chinese factory that it says adheres to a strict code of conduct for worker well-being; when the company discovered that its first manufacturing partner was scheduling workers for 12-hour days, it pulled out of its contract and found another factory, pushing back the launch date for the shoes, which will now go on sale tomorrow.  |
| Steph scores 32 points in shoes designed by daughter Riley - NBCSports.com Posted: 20 Oct 2019 10:29 AM PDT  Draymond Green's most prolific shooting seasons came in the two years before Kevin Durant joined the Warriors. In 2014-15, the first year of the Warriors' historic NBA Finals run, Green averaged 9.7 shots per game. The next season he averaged a career-high 10.1 shots. Once Durant arrived in 2016, Green became the fourth option for the Warriors and peaked at 8.8 shots per game in 2017-18. But with Durant now in Brooklyn and Klay Thompson on the mend, Green will likely get close to his career-high again, and teammate Steph Curry is all for it. "I love it," Curry told The Athletic's Marcus Thompson. "That's what you want to see." Curry and new Warriors guard D'Angelo Russell will shoulder a bulk of the scoring until Thompson returns, but with so many young, unproven players on the roster, Green will need to score in order for Golden State to win games. For reference, Green averaged 8.3 shots in four preseason games. We know it's a small sample size and the Warriors were working on a lot of things during the exhibition season, but it would be beneficial for the Dubs if Green becomes more aggressive when the games start counting on Thursday. [RELATED: Greatness of Draymond dependent on 3-point shooting] If players like Kevon Looney, Willie Cauley-Stein, Marquese Chriss, Glenn Robinson III and Jordan Poole can pick up big chunks of the scoring load, it's possible that Green doesn't need to shoot as much. But all of those players come with question marks surrounding their health or experience. So Green should heed Curry's words and aim for 10 shots a game. The only time he reached that number, the Warriors won 73 games.  |
| Posted: 21 Oct 2019 05:00 AM PDT A grand opening, indeed. This week, Nordstrom makes the biggest move in its 118-year history with the debut of a 320,000-sq.-ft. New York women's flagship on 57th Street, just steps away from Central Park and Columbus Circle — and directly across the street from its men's location. Shoes will play a starring role inside the seven-level store, which sits at the base of the tallest residential building in the Western Hemisphere. The move will dramatically reshape the city's department store landscape at a time when nearby rivals, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman and Bloomingdale's, are stepping up their own renovations and unveiling flashy initiatives. Manhattan newcomer Neiman Marcus continues to establish its presence at Hudson Yards. Barneys, meanwhile, will have its fate sealed this week at a bankruptcy auction — and the store's downfall is another sign that betting on physical retail in today's climate can be risky. But Nordstrom, which was founded as a shoe retailer in Seattle, has always had an advantage over its competitors — thanks to an intense focus on customer service and its breadth of product at a range of prices. A notable part of Nordstrom's winning formula has been its unwavering commitment to the footwear category, which gets top billing at the new store. "We're focused on delivering the best service to each customer who shops with us, covering all price points, from high to low," said Rickey Osorio-Pizarro, retail director of shoes. "We've hired an incredible team, and have been laser focused on teaching them the essentials of shoe fitting and serving customers the Nordstrom way. We've worked hard to combine our physical and digital assets to make it a seamless experience for the customer."  Nordstrom opens to the public on Thursday. CREDIT: Courtesy Image For the opening, the retailer is partnering with Christian Louboutin on a pop-up that is front and center as soon as shoppers enter the store. Also on the ground floor, Olivia Kim, Nordstrom's VP of creative projects, put her stamp on a unique space with Nike, which will feature limited-edition product in an upscale environment. The Nordstrom x Nike partnership was first launched in 2015, and there also is a co-branded men's shop across the street. Upstairs on the second floor, designer shoes span the entire space, with Louboutin getting prime placement in a permanent shop. Other distinct designer areas play up Fendi and Givenchy, among other labels. The other major footwear floor — one level below the street — focuses on contemporary labels in all categories, and there are several notable features that make the space pop. The Shoe Bar, one of the store's seven restaurant concepts, is positioned at the center of the floor and will keep the space buzzing. "It's really half cocktail bar, half coffee bar," Osorio-Pizarro said. "What's great is we have a team of bartenders that are not only going to be working at the shoe bar, but they're going to be out on the floor so customers will be able to order a drink or food in any location. It's the first time we've done anything like it at Nordstrom." Another way the retailer is emphasizing convenience is with a shoe and handbag repair shop, as well as an area for buy-online-pick-up-in-store orders. "Nordstrom is all about shoes, and we know that New Yorkers walk a ton and are hard on their shoes. We'll take care of them," Osorio-Pizzaro said, noting that the retailer will also offer loaner shoes for the shopper to use while their footwear is being repaired.  Winnie Harlow collaborated with Steve Madden on "Perfect Pair" boots for Nordstrom's opening. CREDIT: Courtesy of Nordstrom In addition, Nordstrom partnered with Converse on a customization station that allows consumers to deck out their kicks with custom artwork. And two levels below the street, kids' shoes get their moment, with a clever conveyor belt that will deliver children's picks to them. Vendor partners are excited that Nordstrom is carving out a major presence in the Big Apple. This week's opening follows the recent debut of two smaller Nordstrom Local stores, on the Upper East Side and West Village. The retailer already has two Nordstrom Rack outposts in Manhattan and made a big splash in April 2018 when it feted its first-ever Manhattan men's store.  Nordstrom Local in New York's Upper East Side neighborhood. CREDIT: Courtesy "The energy [of the new flagship] is palpable, and the physical space is stunning," said Marshall Cheek, Tory Burch's SVP of wholesale for the Americas and global licensing. "Like Tory Burch, Nordstrom is a family business and there is an incredible alignment between our companies. They share our unrelenting focus on innovation and customer service." The designer will have a special handbag concept at the store, as well as an exclusive footwear capsule. To celebrate the opening, Nordstrom has also partnered with 14 labels and their influencer collaborators on its "Perfect Pairs" initiative. Influencers involved in the project include Winnie Harlow, Cleo Wade, Shiona Turini, Maria Sharapova, Leandra Medine, Leslie Fremar, Elizabeth Sulcer, Mara Hoffman, Kim Shui, Alyssa Coscarelli, Libby Edelman, Lily Kwong, Patricia Field and Marisa Competello. Brands included are Nike, Vince, Sam Edelman, Steve Madden, Timberland, Ugg, AGL, Birkenstock, Cole Haan, Hunter, Eileen Fisher, Jeffrey Campbell, Sorel and Marc Fisher. "These styles were created in collaboration with a diverse group of inspiring women who are true New Yorkers," said Kristin Frossmo, EVP and GMM for shoes. "We're at our best when we can offer our customers exciting partnerships and exclusive products they can't find anywhere else." — With contributions from Jennie Bell and Nikara Johns For more from Nordstrom NYC's big opening, check back throughout the week and stay tuned for FN's special print feature on Nov. 4. Watch on FN |
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