Four Brooklyn women design LeBron James’ newest shoe
LeBron James’s first women’s basketball shoe sold out within five minutes of its release. The HFR x LeBron 16, the newest shoe in the legendary athlete’s arsenal, made its first appearance on Sept. 4 and was officially released on Sept. 7, selling out almost instantaneously. But the victory wasn’t LeBron’s alone. The shoe was co-designed by four Brooklyn women: Brandice Daniel, Kimberly Goldson, Undra Duncan and Fe Noel.
The HFR x LeBron (and its supplementary campaign, “The Strongest”) was created to celebrate women of color, especially black women, Forbes reported, and James knew he wanted black women to design it. Daniel, of Harlem Fashion Row; Goldson, alum of Project Runway; and Duncan and Noel, contemporary lifestyle designers, created a shoe that revolves around four themes: strength, dignity, courage, and loyalty. These four words can be found on the sole of the sneaker.
Noel points out that the story behind the shoe, the team of its creators, is as powerful as the shoe itself. “We want all women to feel strong,” she said, “ [We want] all women to know their power, all women to feel like queens.”
Brooklyn Boro
View MoreNew York City’s most populous borough, Brooklyn, is home to nearly 2.6 million residents. If Brooklyn were an independent city it would be the fourth largest city in the United States. While Brooklyn has become the epitome of ‘cool and hip’ in recent years, for those that were born here, raised families here and improved communities over the years, Brooklyn has never been ‘uncool’.