— the following is an example of a lesson from the upcoming sport course:

timothy liles / converse

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson timothy liles timothy liles studied furniture design at the rhode island school of design, since graduating in 2005 he has worked for converse designing a number of popular shoes for the brand. designboom recently spoke to tim about his role at the company and various aspects of sports shoe design.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson

‘purchucken’ – casual sneaker tim designed which is made up of several upper pattern pieces and rubber elements taken from various converse heritage models such as ‘chuck taylor’, ‘jack purcell’, ‘one star’, and weapon’.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson ‘a very limited release. it’s like a chicken that’s stuffed inside a duck that’s stuffed inside a turkey…’

what is your main role at converse? I’m a designer for the ‘innovation’ group, our team consists of designers, developers, digital modelers, and materials specialists both in the USA and around the world.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson

part of the product(RED) program. he was asked to create a shoe based on the theme of 100…

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson his design represents ‘a hundred layers of protection, a hundred layers of hope, a hundred layers of love.’

how did you start working in the sports sector? I fell into the sports sector somewhat accidentally. to me, design is design, whether it’s graphics, product… even writing or cooking: most things are designed in some way or another and one can apply the basic principles they learn in one discipline to most others. my schooling was focused on furniture, but when an internship at converse presented itself to me, the transition was completely smooth.

I started off doing mostly graphic work but eventually gained enough ‘shoe knowledge’ to be trusted to create new silhouettes from scratch. it’s been a rewarding experience to learn the sport side of the industry, which presents many different challenges from the lifestyle side.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson ‘double upper’ two uppers on one shoe. sold in many different colorways and materials.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson over 1.2 million pairs have sold so far!

the company is probably best known for ‘chuck taylor all-stars’, how much focus is spent on designing and marketing new versions of this shoe in comparison to developing new models? there is LOTS of great design, marketing and development work from a talented and hard-working group of people dedicated to keeping that shoe relevant. there is also an equal focus on strengthening other areas of the company’s heritage which lies in all kinds of sport: basketball, running, tennis, badminton, training, wrestling… converse has a rich history in performance footwear which it will continue to communicate to the consumer through premier product.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson ‘sloppy’ a chuck taylor time designed which is ‘made poorly’ on purpose just for the sake of fun and kitsch. it was an inside joke and a small homage to the american converse factories of decades past when the shoes had charming defects. how do you decide which new materials, styles, colors etc. to apply to such an iconic design as the all star? the biggest influencers are trend and company history. we do lots of extensive travel and market research to remain aware and in touch with current fashion trends. because footwear runs on a more extended calendar than apparel, however, we have to be very smart about predicting how these trends will evolve 1.5 to 2 years into the future. however, we always try to remain true to the heritage of the brand and never let trend push us into an area that we think might hurt the converse brand in the long run.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson

color variation of ‘sloppy’ – the ink spots also run onto the rubber toe

what is the purpose of these new and limited editions? as we all know, the chuck taylor design has become ubiquitous, so it’s important to make these updates to the shoe. it is the ultimate blank canvas in the product world and it will always remain ripe for embellishment. limited editions and collaborations with outside artists, designers, and retailers maintain the desire for a sneaker that is available in almost every store that carries sneakers around the world.

what are the main distinctions between designing lifestyle and performance sneakers? the most basic way to make the distinction between these two types is to say that the design challenges presented by lifestyle shoes are largely formal, while the challenges presented by performance sneakers are mostly functional. for lifestyle, the budget may be spent more heavily on consumer research and with performance the research dollars are mostly spent on optimizing fit, cushioning systems, stability, lightness, etc.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson ‘espadrille’ – super simple slip-on shoe made with a unilateral shape (there’s no left or right foot) and chuck taylor trompe l’oeil print. footbed keys into the top of the outsole for extra flexibility and closeness to the ground.

what are the basic steps involved in creating a new shoe? the first step in creating a new sports shoe is the research stage. depending on the project this might include brushing up on the general performance precedents set by other successful sneakers for that particular sport; i.e. if it’s basketball you generally need to include some basic performance features such as a lateral midsole outrigger, a pivot point in the outsole, rubber wrap-ups in the tip for toe drag, etc. it’s also necessary to remain aware of the intended consumer, the intended retailer that will stock the shoe, regionality, and the season.

once you’ve set those parameters you can begin designing. believe it or not, this is generally the shortest stage in the product creation process. there may be some review and input from colleagues, but this portion is generally self-edited. when the design is finalized the technical package prepared by the designer is handed off to a developer, who will communicate the specifications to the manufacturer, who then produces a sample. by this point, the project has passed through so many filters and so many sets of hands that a lot of the designer’s intentions have been lost in translation.

after the first sample is completed, the designer, developer, and manufacturer begin collaborating closely to achieve the desired result – which in the end will be greatly affected by price, production limitations, export laws and duties, and timeline.

as with any product, the opportunity for innovation is severely limited by real world logistics which is why the evolution of the perfect sports shoe is extremely slow and incremental. because of this, there’s no foreseeable future in which there’s nothing left to experiment with: quite exciting for future designers.

advertising and launch campaigns are developed more or less in tandem with the creation of the actual product. ideally the ‘brand’ sector of the company has remained aware of the features of the shoe and are working to communicate that to retailers and consumers.

by the time a shoe launches such a large number of people have been dedicated to the project that it really becomes difficult to credit the designer alone with the success or failure of the shoe: something that perhaps students and young designers outside the industry may not realize. it takes a large team of talented people to create a successful product, so as a designer and just one part of the team, it’s important to learn to work well with your collaborators.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson ‘odessa’ – inspired by an original performance running shoe made by converse in the 80s which features an asymmetrical lacing system.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson

which part of this process do you enjoy the most? for me is troubleshooting with the manufacturer. while innovation in performance is always going to be important, I’ve become very interested in ways to innovate on the factory level. with all the digital technological advancements out there to facilitate mass production (rapid prototyping and rapid manufacturing) the possibilities have literally become endless in terms of what we’re able to accomplish in large scale production. it’s an exciting area and one often overlooked by designers too caught up in form and styling.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson these are the models converse’s mold-makers produce for designers to approve before opening a steel mold.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson this is the outsole for the ‘odessa’ shown above.

what new technologies are converse implementing into their designs? converse believes in quiet technology. in the last few years, the company began developing new platforms that expand on the original innovations started in the chuck taylor all star nearly 100 years ago: the tenets of which include a closer relationship between the foot and the shoe, pliability and conformance, and new developments in anatomical fit. a lot of our newest and most exciting technology is confidential, but prepare to see the unexpected from converse in the coming years.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson a multi-color screen printing process.

how are new forms for shoes researched and what are the key factors that influence final outcomes? the biggest influencer we have in the final look of the shoe is brand heritage. we think it’s very important for us to remain a company that can provide a simple, pared down, and original look that our competitors would be hard-pressed to achieve with authenticity. we pay close attention to what our consumer is asking for, and we think a lot of that involves remaining true to ourselves so we can remain true to them.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson shoes at the converse factory near completion.

you also design other products besides sneakers, what are the main differences and similarities between doing sports design and furniture? although the two probably should be very different, I do like to apply a lot of what I’ve learned at converse to my personal work. I try to always keep in mind the fact that what I design and make will have a user. making that person happy/comfortable/perform better should drive the majority of the decisions made during any design process. too often I hear designers say: ‘I just try to make something I would like…’ this misses the point, innovation and newness is important to strive for, but for me, audience will always rule.

do you have any advice for people who would like to work in sports shoe design? do your research! learn the histories of all the major brands: this includes those in the brown shoe industry! examine all kinds of footwear very closely, cut things apart, measure one pair against another, learn every type of shoemaking process. buy some old lasts on eBay and make some shoes by hand. there’s so much more to a great piece of footwear than styling and materials. rendering and other communication skills will always be important in any product design industry, but a deep understanding of footwear inside and out, and a strong thirst to gain even more knowledge is absolutely priceless.

design aerobics 2011: sport course sample lesson finished shoes racked-up and ready to go!

— converse all stars a brief history you probably know at least one person who owns or has owned a pair of the classic american shoes ‘chuck taylor all-stars’ or as they are more commonly known today ‘converse all stars’. typified by the canvas uppers, white rubber toes and star on the heel, all-stars are the best selling sports shoes ever made – having sold over a billion pairs by now.

the shoes were originally designed in 1917 (black with white rubber toes) and have changed only very slightly since then. with the many competitors over the years – why have the remained so popular?

well, the shoes didn’t actually do very well at all until they were promoted by the basketball player chuck taylor from late 1918 onwards. the player officially endorsed them and helped converse make some design alterations to improve them for athletes. from 1923 onwards the shoes bore a patch on the ankle that had taylor’s name and signature on. through various promotions and coaching stints chuck helped make the shoe part of young american’s gym kit and as new rookies arrived on the basketball scene they could be seen wearing his converse shoe. by the end of the the 1960s converse had 80% of the american sports shoe market.

between the 1920s and the 60s the converse all star had gone from being available in only black or white to being available in a wide range of colors – that matched popular basketball team’s uniforms and were also available in high and low cut designs. new materials were introduced -with leather, suede and vinyl, and hemp being used rather than just canvas – laceless, elasticized versions were also released in the late 60s. chuck retired in 1968 and died from a heart attack a year later – from that point onwards the shoe began to loose it’s popularity on the court.

after their almost 40 year stranglehold the shoes started to become more popular with subcultures who didn’t want to buy into the emerging globalized brands of nike, adidas and reebok. ‘chuck taylor all-stars’ were often seen sported by american punks in the 70s as well as hip-hoppers and grunge rockers. after something of a quiet spell the shoes started to gain a massive following from youths across the world in the late 90s through the rise of hip-hop and indie rock bands – who had made all-stars their shoe of choice becoming the best selling shoe in the world by 2005.