SHAQUILLE O'NEAL
Father
Humanitarian
Philanthropist
Entrepreneur
NBA Hall of Fame Inductee
NBA Champion
NBA All-Star
He is known by many titles and names, and he is larger than life and one of the most down to earth guys you will ever meet.
Follow the Journey and how it transpired.
Behind the Scenes
The SHAQStory
Check out Rocky's Blog that tells the backstory of when Shaquille O'Neal reached out to him to ask if ROCKDEEP would create a custom sneaker for him.
One can never know the entire story, only what they see.
THE PROCESS
How I Ideate
When I was at Jordan Brand / Nike consulting I sat with some of the most creative, innovative and genius minds not only in the footwear industry but in life period.
I learned from the likes of Dr. D'Wayne Edwards then Design Director of Jordan Brand, Gentry Humphrey, then VP of Jordan Brand.
I also got to sit and pick the brains of experienced executives, as well as Legends in the Footwear Industry like Nico Harrison, then VP of North American Basketball Operations at Nike, his boss and mentor Lynn Merritt who was Nikes Sports Marketing EVERYTHING.
Howard "H" White VP of ALL of Jordan Brand, didn't know me from a hill of beans, but allowed me to come and sit with him in his office and ask anything. I would sit and just listen.
Those gentlemen imparted so much knowledge on me, I could write a book on it, however one person who I don't think gets enough credit in this industry but has done so much gave me life and footwear advice that I implement daily. His name is Jason Mayden, present Design Director of Jordan.
"Jay May" as he's affectionally called by folks, gave me insight on his ideation process and I use a version of it before any and all design projects. Jason showed me mini books he created based on the athletes he was designing for.
It allowed him to gain even more inspiration and perspective on his project.
These weren't notes. These were fully developed stories that connected to the athlete. So I took "DNA" from that idea, and I create a presentation before every project. I research the person I am potentially collaborating with, find as many things that may not be publicly known, or perhaps has nuance to what everyone may already know.
This coupled with obvious conversations and such, and the presentation allows me to go in a direction, even if the direction should change.
I won't go into the depth's of my ideation process but if you are a designer or even a person who is creative, always create a story for the journey you are about to embark on.
So Many Options
I have over 300 designs and finding one or a few that would be right for Shaq was no easy feat. So I sent him various screenshots of designs I had in mind. I had to narrow the options down, so I didn't overwhelm him visually.
Most athletes need to be really guided one way or another but Shaq isn't just any other athlete. He knows what he wants.
These were just some color and style options in one of the few screenshots I sent.
Removing the Guess Work
Shaq had only 2 requests overall. They be able to slide on easily and he wanted whatever I made to fit.
So I couldn't chance guessing, and knowing he was too busy to go thru too many directions to measure his foot he offered to send me a pair of his kicks.
Lets just say Shaq is serious about his business. I was expecting them to arrive by the end of the week.
They arrived the next day.
SAMPLE PATTERNS
How It Starts Is How It Must End
While the creative process is one where you can go into so many directions, Footwear Production for me is something I want to be consistent. If I show ROCKDEEP customers mockup images of a future sneaker, I don't want it to look completely different from the Production Sneaker.
I don't even want it to look ALMOST like the mock-up. I have prided myself on being able to always produce and manufacture exactly what I set out to do. It helps knowing upfront what won't work functionally design wise before going down this road.
When mentoring other aspiring designers, I always tell them, many can design a good looking pair of sneakers, but will the factory be able to manufacture them?
With Shaq, We had to go with the basics!
Fit.
This was a picture I sent him, wanting him to make a silhouette of his foot and measure the length and width.
Shaq suggested sending a pair of his sneakers because he didn't want to get it wrong.
Because I didn't have the ability to fly down and do the measurements myself, and Shaq was always on the go, I decided to go with utilizing the pair he sent.
Random Note:
I NEVER EVER ask anyone I work with for freebies, or things of that nature. However, when you are making a pair of size 23 sneakers, with Shaq's name on them, even the factory gets excited for such an opportunity.
They asked if Shaq would be willing to send a pair for them, not only to use to reengineer for the purposes of the project, but to put up in the factory, as a pride piece.
Shaq said no problem.
This is just a small part of who Shaquille O'Neal the person is.
Below You Will See a Summary of the End To End Process.
SHAQ's FINAL PICS
Mansa Musa L.E.
Mansa Musa L.E.
Mansa Musa L.E.
The First was our popular Mansa Musa sneaker.
Named after the The Richest Man to ever live Mansa Musa of Mali.
I knew it would provide comfort which Shaq said he didn't really care about, but also the ability to easily slide on his feet.
B.R.E. Severus
Mansa Musa L.E.
Mansa Musa L.E.
The Third style was our unreleased B.R.E. Severus.
Named after Lucius Septimius Severus the first Black Roman Emperor from 193 to 211.
He was born in Leptis Magna, Libya in the Roman province of Africa.
Vegan Runner
Mansa Musa L.E.
Vegan Runner
The Second was our Vegan Runner 2 which never released publicly.
I knew Shaq would like these because of the ability for them to slide on his feet, but also their comfort, as I'd seen him wear something similar in Instagram Reels where he was working out.