THE SHOE DOGS
THE SHOE DOGS

Innovation is never linear. The Foamposite was originally intended to be an entry priced shoe...

ALWRLD needed a name, logo, product, and strategy.

EQLZ needed to breakthrough the clutter.

Avelo wanted a brand logo that captured the perfect stride.

Footlocker hated it and MJ was retired. But this shoe created riots at retail and launched a brand.

The Shoe Dogs made the most expensive sneaker ever.

The Shoe Dogs are always thinking of Steph.

The Shoe Dogs created bellisimo tennis shoes for FILA.

25 years ago we made the future. It remains futuristic.

What We Do

Design

Branding

Branding

Design is more than sketching a good-looking shoe.
It demands deep knowledge of engineering, materials, and manufacturing. Great design is the balance of art and science. The Shoe Dogs know every millimeter matters—and that how a shoe feels is just as important as how it looks.


Branding

Branding

Branding

Brand and product identity are core story elements.
The Shoe Dogs have built identities for athletes like Steph Curry and brands like Avelo. Every identity we create drips with story and meaning.


Strategy

Branding

Strategy

Yep, that’s an ugly duckling.
Too many brands waste time and money chasing bad directions. Copying the competition is basically tossing cash into a dumpster fire.

The Shoe Dogs know how to find the clean, open space in the market—where clarity lives and clutter dies.
Disruption? That’s our happy place.


Sourcing

Sourcing

Strategy

Great design dies with mediocre sourcing.
The Shoe Dogs have handpicked world-class factory partners to bring products to life. From cutting-edge material vendors to master last makers, the best of the best are ready to make the next great product.


Testing

Sourcing

Testing

It doesn't work until it works.

The Shoe Dogs know even the best-laid plans can get blown to smithereens in testing. Real people putting real wear on your idea is the fastest way to improve and innovate. We know testing better than anyone—and if you skip this step, you’ll regret it.

Seeding

Sourcing

Testing

Influence the influencers.
The Shoe Dogs know the power of the risk-takers—the creative minds who inspire us all. Finding them, building authentic relationships, and fueling that community is the foundation of intrigue. From hidden boutiques in Tokyo to underground Milan, we know exactly how to do it.

The Shoe Dogs

David Bond

Val Middleton

Val Middleton

The Jordan brand, Zoom AIR, shoes with "AIR" written on the side, and AI-powered running shoes would probably exist without David...but he made them all just a little better. David has brought an insane amount of creativity to design, marketing, and management positions held at Nike, Adidas, UA, and Quiksilver. He's Billy Blazejowski reincarnated. 

Val Middleton

Val Middleton

Val Middleton

We don’t toss around “Modern Marketing Maestro” for fun — Val earned it. She’s the EVP, Head of Sport at M+C Saatchi Sport, held the same gig at SC30, ran the show as CMO at Virtue, and led Curry Brand Marketing at Under Armour. Translation: Val knows how to connect brands to people better than you do. (Don’t take it personally — nobody does it better.)  

Aaron Cooper

Val Middleton

Aaron Cooper

Scottie Pippen, Lebron James, and Serena Williams all benefitted from once-in-a-generation talent...and Coop's designs. Coop is an Art Center trained industrial designer and biohacking legend. Coop has meticulously honed his craft in basketball, running, tennis, and innovation at Nike.


Fred Dojan

Guido Genico

Aaron Cooper

Every brand has a secret smart guy that invents all the cool stuff and never gets credit.  That's Fred.  From ground breaking foams to record breaking plates, Fred has invented it all. Fred has forgotten more than most people know.


Guido Genico

Guido Genico

Guido Genico

Taste can be a skillset. Guido is a master at identifying what it takes to connect with the European consumer. Merchandising, product creation, and sales excellence are his superpowers. Oh, he was also an Olympic caliber runner.  


Kevin Paulk

Guido Genico

Guido Genico

"Poke" once gave a eulogy at Bill Bowerman's funeral. The day before the eulogy Phil Knight said, "Hey Poke, cut it in half". Not only is KP a world class runner and running shoe developer, but he has the ability to adapt on the fly and make everything he touches more efficient.


Peter Ruppe

Greg Thompson

Fritz Taylor

 From Nike’s factory floors in Korea to the top of Nike Footwear — Peter’s done it all. Nike. Under Armour. Columbia. The man’s played on every big stage.
His superpower? Cutting through chaos, solving the big problems, and getting teams to follow him into battle.
Real leadership. No buzzwords required.


Fritz Taylor

Greg Thompson

Fritz Taylor

Nobody knows running shoes like Fritz, he’s an industry running shoe savant.  He has led the running teams at Nike, Brooks, Mizuno and Under Armour and been behind innovations like Brooks DNA and Under Armour HOVR.   In a nod to his Shoe Dog notoriety he was named one of the all-time top Shoe Dogs by Running Insights magazine and voted into the Running Retailers Hall of Fame.

Greg Thompson

Greg Thompson

Greg Thompson

Before Greg, Nike didn't make fashion forward athletic footwear.  Fashion was the F-word.  Today Nike is the worldwide leader in lifestyle footwear.  Do the math. Thomo pioneered luxury fashion, street fashion, music collabs, street culture, and art collaborations. You're welcome.  What you might not know is that Thomo is an insane athlet

Before Greg, Nike didn't make fashion forward athletic footwear.  Fashion was the F-word.  Today Nike is the worldwide leader in lifestyle footwear.  Do the math. Thomo pioneered luxury fashion, street fashion, music collabs, street culture, and art collaborations. You're welcome.  What you might not know is that Thomo is an insane athlete. Surfer, pro triathlete, pro basketball, and marathoner.  Aussie through and through. 

Luna The Dog

Luna The Dog

Greg Thompson

Dogs are amazing. They can smell a tennis ball three blocks away and hear a fridge door crack open before you’ve even decided on a snack. But their real superpower? Love. Unfiltered, unstoppable, tail-wagging love.

The Shoe Dogs are built the same way.
We’ve got noses for iconic product, ears tuned to sport and sneaker culture, and a tail-wagging love of shoes.

EQLZ Case Study

Concept

Concept

Concept

The founders of EQLZ—Shanghai ballers and sneakerheads chasing the purity of Golden Era hoops—tapped Shoe Dogs David Bond and Aaron Cooper to craft a new range of basketball shoes. Their mission: strip away the over-designed, over-hyped, and over-priced clutter of today’s market and deliver pure performance for the next generation of players.

Crafted

Concept

Concept

The Shoe Dogs combined state-of-the-art materials with fluid minimalism to create basketball shoes that feel as good as they look. A custom-crafted last, TPEE supercritical foam, and a supportive seamless upper come together for a court experience that borders on nirvana.

Millimeters

Millimeters

Millimeters

Millimeters matter. The majority of modern basketball shoes are merely graphic expressions - all show and no go. The Shoe Dogs craft every millimeter to ensure a more beautiful experience. 

Happiness

Millimeters

Millimeters

“Working with The Shoe Dogs has been a game-changer for us at EQLZ. Their integrated approach — blending strategy, design, and innovation — brought our vision to life. From creative storytelling to product seeding and market testing, they connected every part of the process seamlessly, helping us deliver designs that truly resonate.”

— Winter Zhang, Co-Founder, EQLZ

CURRY Case Study

Game Changer

Game Changer

Game Changer

After 10 years in the NBA Steph Curry had clearly established himself as a once-in-a-generation game changer. His footwear and personal brand, however, wasn't living up to his standards. Steph asked one of the Shoe Dogs to reinvent his brand and product.

Superpower

Game Changer

Game Changer

Val Middleton, David Bond and Stanley Hainsworth's Tether agency worked in harmony to capture Steph's superpowers of bringing joy and 3-point mastery to the sport of basketball. The logo needed to capture Steph's unstoppable movement and the game's most valuable shot.

Splash

Game Changer

Splash

The Curry Splash logo captures everything about Steph. At first glance, it’s the symbol of a made three-pointer. Look closer and you’ll spot his initials and his number cleverly built into the mark. And if you tilt your head just right—you’ll notice it’s smiling. Quite literally, the happiest basketball logo ever created. You’re welcome. 

Flow

What's next?

Splash

The Curry Flow—the first basketball shoe without rubber—set a new standard for traction and agility. Developed by Shoe Dog Fred Dojan, it gives athletes the freedom to move more fluidly on the court. For Steph, it means creating space from defenders and unleashing more three-pointers than anyone in history.

For Good

What's next?

What's next?

The Curry Brand didn’t find its purpose by accident — Val Middleton and David Bond handed it the playbook.
They saw what everyone else missed: Steph didn’t just pull up from 30 feet, he pulled the whole game forward.
While the sneaker world was still worshipping heroes, they built a brand with a heartbeat. Purpose over ego. Splash.

What's next?

What's next?

What's next?

Today Curry is a free agent. The player that changed the sport of basketball is about to change the sneaker game for good. Imagine what Steph could do with total control of his brand and a new team of craftsmen and partners. We are looking forward to Steph wearing shoes worthy of his status. We are also looking forward to Steph to blend innovation with inclusion.

Performance Luxury Case Study

Make luxe feel good.

All my dress shoes feel like dress shoes. And my running shoes feel better than any other shoes I own. What if we combined them?

Hand-crafted.

We imagined what a hand-crafted raw leather would look like with an ATPU supercritical midsole in race geometry.



Eggshell.

Eggshell.

Found some eggshell leather and cobbled it up in my workshop. 


FILA Case Study

Started with history.

FILA asked for a fresh take on FILA tennis footwear. We went to the FILA museum in beautiful Biella, Italy and we were inspired by Bjorn and Grant. So we blended these iconic elements into a high-performance tennis shoe.

Imagined it green.

We also were given the challenge of making this high-performance and stylish shoe sustainable. That wasn't easy.

Put it on court.

Put it on court.

The Forza came to market and made a unique statement on the tennis court. 

Flacon Case Study

Can you make a falcon?

Someone said, "Can you make me a shoe that looks like a falcon?" We said, "Really?" He said, "I'm dead serious"

Like this?

He said, "Yes, like that! And can you make it super-light and playable?" We said, "Of course we can". So we started making it...

Kinda unique.

Fast and light.

We don't hate it. Kinda funky. It makes you feel light on your feet. Fast, for sure. 

Fast and light.

Fast and light.

Footwear these days are mechanical and computer drawn.  We think nature is a great source of inspiration. 

On court.

It looks pretty cool on the court to us. Not often that shoes look like they can fly...

Too much?

Yeah, this probably wasn't the best idea for an image. But, so what, at least it met the brief. (We also don't believe anyone is this far down our website).

The Work


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    THE SHOE DOGS

    Los Angeles, Portland, Phoenix, Atlanta, & Regio Emilia, Italy

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