When his name was be associated to high-performance sports, Jeff Henderson jumped to Cole Haan and UA to later stay away from big corporations and to try and control the whole process from NinetyNineProducts, his own project. Each one of his designs seemed to check boxes of the unexpected, a sneaker for babies without having kids of his own? Done. A model for the first Japanese player from the NBA? Done. Bringing back the Air Max? Done. Developing a model for Tinker Hatfield, the man who hired him two decades prior? Done. Turning Yeezy into a global phenomenon? Done.
JEFF HENDERSON, THE FUTURE OF DESIGN IS DIVERSITY
In each group, there are different people, the one who at first doesn’t seem to fit in and yet still, they’re the true catalyst of the group, they’re the one who avoids the collective from moving in a uniform and predictable way. In the world of sneaker design, Jeff Henderson has constantly carried out that role. An engineer in a world of designers, an African American in predominantly white offices, a Westerner who designs for Japanese people, someone who hates running and makes sneakers for runners.
A career in design that is appreciated by its products, not headlines. We prefer for him to tell us about the evolution of his work, with the hopes of seeing something that takes us closer to the future.
You came to the world of shoe design in an unorthodox way, how was your path? What is the road you would recommend?
There are a few proper ways to become a footwear designer these days: industrial design schools, specific footwear schools like Pensole or apprenticeships with factories. I wasn’t sure how to do it 25 years ago, so I got an engineering degree and worked at Champs. I got an entry-level job doing blueprints and kept taking advantage of lucky breaks until I belonged.
While the money isn’t the same, the number of people paid to design shoes is about the same as people who play in the NBA. It’s not an easy place to land. If you know the odds you may not feel as bad when you get an occasional rejection. I routinely post my Nike rejection letter when someone needs to see they’re not alone.
You have worked on the design of performance products and also fashion. Is the design very different from both sides?
I like to think that performance and fashion can be done together but the approach is very different for each. A performance shoe can be successful if it isn’t stylish and a fashion shoe can be successful if it doesn’t perform, but that doesn’t mean the product can’t have both. I love working with designers who only care about one or the other because I look for ways to introduce the other side of the equation.
My first 15 years of design were primarily based in performance so that is my default. Living in NYC and traveling to Europe and Asia allows me to vibe with fashion folks that balance their work in ways I didn’t understand early on in my career.
Today the internet makes both worlds easier to navigate if you have the correct tour guides because most of the information is presented second and third hand or by people trying to sell you something you may not need.
Nike, Cole Haan, UA, Yeezy, NinetyNineProducts... Is the approach to design from different brands very different? Do you think that each of your products has something that identifies it?
Every brand approaches product creation from their own point of view. Some brands are about innovation or performance. Some brands are focused on consumer or retail. There are times when you try to embody the brand’s philosophy into the project at all costs and there are times when brands ask for something more iconic to the project.
My creative process is usually the evolution of conversations I have with a brand’s caretakers. NinetyNine Products is the first time I haven’t been driven by an existing brand philosophy, but the product is still the result of countless hours of questioning what people like and what they love.
Sometimes our best work is not the best known. You have designed sneakers for NBA players, Olympic champions and Grammys winners, but is there any design you have a special affection for? Any design you are especially proud of?
For most of my career, I’ve learned about shoes through their creative process, so I began to appreciate the stories more than the designs themselves. That said, I always love the shoes that start out as nothing and end up having success.
No one in Nike cared about the Baby Fit until it became an Alpha Model next to high-end Basketball shoes. The Air Max franchise hadn’t been in brand conversations for five years until 2009 snuck up on people because Harlem and Brooklyn and Southwest Atlanta adopted it.
Same was true for the Lunargrand and Yeezy. All of those stories have ups and downs that I can’t really share publicly but they are the reasons I’m fond of certain shoes. I love the people I’ve worked with that the industry knows but the rest of the world may never know existed.
In your work, I appreciate the importance of diversity. Do you see changes in the current design regarding diversity?
Diversity was always the key to my opportunities and successes because my approach was always from a fresh perspective – either because I’m Black or from Ohio or an engineer or I draw in Adobe Illustrator. If I view being different as a strategic advantage it shouldn’t be a shock that I look for talent in people that don’t usually get opportunities. I see more folks looking to be more inclusive in their approach and consumers expecting better products for every walk of life. It never occurred to me to do shoes for seniors until my older brother became ill. Then I realized the stigma attached to those consumers simply because of their shoes. Those spaces are opportunities to create something fresh and to drive business.
Most jobs require experience, but in footwear design, there seems to be a struggle between having experience and seeing the product as a teenager. How do you get that contradiction?
I see a lot of talented people bypassing the standard experience requirements by building their own lane. You can find 3/4’s of the information you need in being a good designer online and by studying what’s already out there. Most designers I know would be happy to share their knowledge to anyone truly interested in studying the craft – from best practices of color dams on aluminum molds to standard stitches per inch on a women’s 6-inch heel. Tuition for a semester is about the same cost as a 3 week trip to Italy to work in a factory.
Mix that old world, industry knowledge with a fresh perspective and you’ll be hard to stop. I’m not saying it’s going to be easy. I’m not saying that people will roll out the red carpet for you just because you try. Far from that. But I’ve watched designers with a lot of talent and passion go for years without good work until they got lucky on a project.
Last year I became obsessed with comedians that worked on their craft – not because I wanted to become a comic but because the level of studying and preparation and efficiency was more pronounced than any other creative discipline I’d ever witnessed from the outside.
That’s why I started sharing my random stories because most of those stories are legally trapped in Beaverton, Calabasas, Herzog, etc. I’ve been careful about sharing insights without ruffling feathers, but I’m glad that there are people who appreciate sneakers beyond the next Jordan launch.
Diversity is the key element in Jeff Henderson’s professional career and it also seems to be the key to the future
