Black Culture Defines the Sneaker Game
If you are a Sneakerhead and fashion lover then owner Devlin Carter is a man with a brand that shares the same DNA as you. This luxury fashion brand has a large part of its focus on the high end athleisure market but it’s not just to stunt. His graduation from Fashion Institute for Design and Merchandising in San Francisco only served to further lessons that began years earlier under the mentorship of Augusto Cerrone, the owner of American Shoe Repair in Queens, New York. There he learned the skills of the trade, and began to construct his own custom Nikes. His time at Fashion Institute came after a stint in the Coast Guard and he made the connections there that would make it possible to start Sia Collective in 2019.
Since then, he has become one of the most prolific designers in the sneaker game, with new colorways dropping weekly and a regular influx of new silhouettes that feature unique takes and premium materials. If you are looking for a black owned brand that features sneakers and modern fashion that is always going to have something new, then this brand will answer the call. Just be aware, you might have to act quick to cop the most popular styles in your size.
Ninety Nine Products is a unique brand that focuses it’s product line on community. They believe that everyone deserves access to quality footwear without paying for the hype. Their selection isn’t super broad, but it is growing. The cool thing is they spotlight people that have a positive impact on the growth, empowerment and success of their communities. To put it short, this brand isn’t just about the footwear, which is cool and fashion forward, but about making a statement and supporting the ones who need it most.
One of the most celebrated and sought after designers of the new fashion era, Salehe Bembury, has launched his own line of sneakers. After collaborating with brands like Crocs and New Balance, he had a plethora of options to choose from, and instead decided to join the independent wave with Spunge. The brand will allow Salehe to bring his own vision to fruition with each design. His first drop is the Osmosis and you can grab them for $150.
Co-founder of Brandblack, David Raysse came into this venture with years of experience under his belt. A former footwear designer at both Fila, where he worked on shoes worn by Grant Hill and Jerry Stackhouse, and Adidas, he brings a wealth of knowledge of both design and the apparel business to his current company. Founded in 2014, Brandblack would become a place where he and his co-founder could finally make sure the cool shoes made it to market. Since then, the brand has continued on an upward trajectory, especially after gaining independence from early investor Skeckers. Now this Black owned sneaker brand offers dozens of silhouettes and colorways that are both fashionable and built for performance.
There was a lot of chatter about certain NBA players potentially starting their own sneaker lines, but few actually came to fruition. One that did was Ethics the Brand, which comes from husband and wife team Langston and Sabrina Galloway. Langston worked his way into the league the hard way, going through the G-League and a 10-day contract with the New York Knicks before also spending time with Pelicans, Kings and Pistons.
Ethics the Brand is designed to be a paradigm shift for athletes. The sneakers are designed with basketball at the forefront, to be a shoe capable of performing at the highest levels. It started with the LgOne and now a second design, the LgTwo that is available in 5 colors. These black owned basketball shoes are also affordable, coming in under $150. You can get a good product that the owners stand by, at a great price ready for you today.
Create the Brand is a young but growing premium streetwear brand. The output here is steady, with multiple options being available at a given time, but what also is impressive is the ability to do something customized and unique. The goal of the brand is to bring creative vision to life through fashion. You can do that as well when you grab something from their collection and bring something truly different to your collection.
Growing up in Los Angeles, A Cheap Vacation CEO and designer Leigha Rose always knew that your style or fashion was notable. As a young athlete, it was natural for her to gravitate towards active apparel and sneakers. Having varied tastes, her collection included everything from Airwalk, to Nike with plenty of stops at the brands in between. All of this has influenced her own design sensibilities and desire to create a brand of her own.
A Cheap Vacation is an attainable luxury line of footwear. Leigha Rose’s goal is to provide quality luxury goods for communities of color. As now, the brand offers two different silhouettes both of which Leigha Rose designed herself. The company also offer four colors of slides and is working on an upcoming apparel line as well.
When talking about both women owned sneaker brands, and those which are focused on performance, Saysh has to come to mind. This brand has serious performance DNA, being founded by Olympic Legend Allyson Felix. Felix was inspired after the 10 time Olympic medalist was asked by her former brand to take a 70% paycut after getting pregnant. However, it wasn’t just her treatment that she was concerned about, the brand refused to offer adequate protections to all of its other female athletes, so she left.
Saysh is one of the first steps in establishing more equity for women in the Sports world. These running shoes are designed by a world class athlete with women at the front of mind. Along with her brother and co-founder Wes, Allyson Felix is fighting to change the dynamics for women in sports.
Monolith New York is a new luxury streetwear brand. The first release is currently in a second pre-order phase, so you can lock in a lux casual sneaker with simple but well crafted design. The Monstera has three colors you can choose from right now and if you support, you can help this designer grow his new brand.
Brittany Perry was a lifetime sneakerhead who often had to resort to buying men’s shoes for the most stylish colorways. After graduating from college with a Business Degree, she got her first job and had to adapt to a more conservative culture. This is one of the inspirations for her sneaker line. In 2018 after a couple of years of design and prep work, Perry Co launched. Her goal was to create a unisex shoe that is classy enough to be worn in a variety of circumstances from business to casual.
Fini Brand began as Fini Shoes in 2018. Founder Dami Adepoju designs lifestyle products for maximum comfort and durability. Their shoes feature unique and adjustable modular design elements to help add to their versatility. They do this with attachable accessories that each give the shoe its own look, while maintaining a luxury sophistication that allows them to be great for weekdays at work, or on the weekends for fun.
Nem Brand is another new brand building a business based on quality and intentionality. Founders Nathaniel and Re’onda want to build something that not only reflects their values, but leaves a legacy for their children. The first silhouette, the 19/20 is a cross trainer style sneaker that comes in four different colorways. They each feature a breathable upper with a cushioning foam midsole for lightness and a rubber tread for durability.
Another great Black owned tennis shoe brand that combines comfort, quality and luxury is Savale Footwear. The brand was conceived and founded by Alphonso Rawls. The former skateboarder brings over 20 years of design and industry knowledge honed by working at brands like Dada Supreme and DC shoes. That history and experience is all applied to the designs for Savale. Each design aims to tell a story using premium materials and with attention to detail.
It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that in the long distance running world, Kenya is known as one of the countries with the best marathon runners in the world. They might know something about running shoes. Enda Sportswear is a Kenyan sportswear company that makes some great shoes if you’re trying to be competitive or, just running for fun.
Humans at War is not just a sneaker brand. It is instead a streetwear company with serious high fashion concepts like snap backs and hoodies. Alongside those items, the brand also has spider web inspired “runners”. These low cut shoes are the latest design from the brand which also had a skate inspired chunky sole sneaker a couple of years ago. Keep up with this brand via their website or instagram to see the latest drops. Did I mention they are super affordable? The web runners are under 100 bucks before shipping so they make a nice addition to the shoe collection with a minimal investment.
Loci is a partially black owned brand that has an environmental focus to their design and manufacturing process. Supported across the globe by creatives, Loci has been making a name for themselves in the luxury footwear market. Their products are made with high quality, eco-friendly materials that are sourced from reliable suppliers. For example their canvas is made from recycled Mediterranean Sea plastics and they feature insoles made from cork. Loci also puts its money where it’s mission is, donating 10% of their profits to wildlife conservation charities.
Shaquille O’neal is one of the biggest stars of our generation and is well known for his philanthropy. After departing from Reebok, The Big Diesel wanted to make shoes that anyone could afford and accomplished that. Even with all of his years of experience and success, the goal of the Shaq brand remains the same and it has become a family affair with his son Shareef leading the way with new designs to modernize the brand for a new generation.
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