If You Build It…

America’s first sneaker business and culture academy opens in Brooklyn.

IT’S BEEN FIVE YEARS in the making, delayed by Covid, but not denied. The SOLEcial Studies CommUNITY Academy (SSCA) dream has finally come true for founders Sean Williams and DeJongh “Dee” Wells of Obsessive Sneaker Disorder (OSD), a multi-media and marketing company that works with clients in the footwear and fashion industries. The academy’s two other founding partners are DJ, music producer, and composer Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest, Lucy Pearl, and Midnight Hour fame, and Heeling Soles, a 501c3 charitable organization that collects donated new and used sneakers, coats, and living supplies to those in need as well as works in local communities to address bullying, gang affiliation, crime, and food insecurities.

Williams says it’s a dream team fulfilling their collective dream in the heart of sneaker culture, the Dumbo section of Brooklyn. The academy will serve as the community-based headquarters for OSD’s SOLEcial Studies sneaker education program, launched in 2011, and its mission to educate and empower people to learn about and actively seek out careers in the athletic footwear industry, particularly in non-creative areas. OSD has expanded its in-person and online curriculum to include courses about intellectual property, business networking, Web 3 technology, and NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness). The academy will also serve as a content creation studio where sneaker- and music-themed programming will be recorded in audio and video formats, as well as a certified donation point on behalf of Heeling Soles.

“We want to give people of all ages in our community a chance to tap into this $100-billion industry, and we want to give back as often as we can,” says Williams, noting that the initial response has been great. “It’s been a ‘build it and they will come’ scenario. We built it, our partners are standing with us, and people are already making the pilgrimage.”

As for academy highlights, Williams starts with the Web 3 technology-enabled Library of Laces. All the books are managed in a blockchain with NFTs tied to them. “We also have an artist feature wall, which will allow us to feature a new artist every two months,” he says. “There’s a sneaker exhibition wall that will change themes each month, as well. The SSCA is also a content creator space where we’ll be producing sneaker-themed podcasts [OSD launched the industry’s first sneaker talk show podcast in 2007] and masterclass style content.” Williams adds that students can also take a course on networking and building business relationships for success. “People generally really need that one, especially after what Covid did to social interaction,” he says, noting that more than 100 alumni of the SOLEcial Studies program have found work in the sneaker and fashion industries since its launching. “Everything OSD endeavors to achieve in the sneaker industry is directly tied to our mantra: Appreciate, Educate, Elevate.”

Now about SCAA’s Dumbo digs. Williams says the location and the facilities are ideal. “We’re based in one of the best neighborhoods in all of New York for food, art, fashion, and film,” he says. “We’ll be taking full advantage of that by doing photo shoots for small fashion and footwear brands to help them with their look books. We also have an event space that will allow us to hold small conventions and award shows.” There’s also a hometown factor for the founders. “I was born and raised in Brooklyn, Dee has family here, and Ali Shaheed is also from Brooklyn,” he says. “Steve Muir (president/ cofounder) of Heeling Soles also does a lot of work in Brooklyn, so this is really important for us to do this for the ‘home team.’”

On that note, Williams says one of the initial goals for the SSCA is to become the hub for area schools and organizations that, for years, have been elusive to SOLEcial Studies. “We’ve always been a ‘have sneakers will travel’ kind of program, and there is an urgent need to be centralized and serve people in our beloved New York,” he says. As for looking further out, Williams says the goal, in five years, is to offer classes for free to anyone. That means securing financial sponsors. Until then, the SCAA’s work is self-financed and available for a fee to the public. “Removing the fiscal barrier for everyone would take us to heights we’ve been dreaming of since we started SOLEcial Studies,” Williams says. Adds Muhammad, “There’s no better place to establish a facility of opportunity, a place where people can learn and have access to the global sneaker industry. This school will be the jump off to transforming lives.”