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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 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.
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.)
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.
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.
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.
"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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 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.
“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
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Mark Sheehan - Olympic-caliber runner and Shoe Dog - told me about a trend called Niko Niko running. He described Niko Niko running as a Japanese form of super slow running with amazing health benefits. He said, "Running at a pace where you are smiling and talking will put years on your life". Compelling...
We found out super-slow running is basically a cheat code for better health. After a few long, slow runs ourselves, we started eyeing the shoes. Most running shoes are built like race cars—way too much engine for the pace. That’s when we started cooking up a different idea: the world’s first Super Slow Running Shoe.
We liked the shape and simplicity of the Super Slow Running Shoe sketch, so we dropped it into an AI rendering software to get a closer look. We like the shape and posture.
What if modern technologies - supercritical and carbon plates - were applied to slower paced running?
Nike does most things well, maybe introducing the world's first super slow running shoe would open up new consumers?
Imagery in running is mostly intense. What if running was presented as something enjoyable?
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.
We also were given the challenge of making this high-performance and stylish shoe sustainable. That wasn't easy.
The Forza came to market and made a unique statement on the tennis court.
OK, so, an athlete came to us and said, "Can you make me a shoe that looks like my pet falcon?" We said, "Really?" He said, "I dead serious"
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...
We don't hate it. Kinda funky. It makes you feel light on your feet. Fast, for sure.
We don't hate it. Kinda funky. It makes you feel light on your feet. Fast, for sure.
It looks pretty cool on the court to us. Not often that shoes look like they can fly...
Yeah, this probably wasn't the best idea for an image. But, so what, at least it met the brief.