To help staff design their shoes, the Bears hosted painting events and brought in Sneakerhead University, a Chicago-based immersive exhibit and workshop that focuses on the art, culture and history of sneakers.
Sneakerhead University’s founder and owner Shay Belvin said working with the Bears has been the company’s largest opportunity yet and is thankful for the club’s support in helping her business evolve.
Soria first discovered Sneakerhead on TikTok and shared it with the Bears’ DEI team. When Bears manager of diversity, equity and inclusion Mallorie Sanders took a closer look at the company, she felt it aligned perfectly with the club’s goal of “always finding ties to the community.”
“Sneakerhead University is only here in Chicago,” Sanders said. “It’s in the loop, in the heart of the city. It’s Black-owned and woman-owned and it’s newer so it gives us a really fun opportunity to highlight this group that a lot of people might not know about. But being in Chicago where Jordans were born, for us to highlight an organization that does so much with sneakers, knowing how important that is to culture, I think that helps our brand. And it helps support a business that’s doing some incredible work in Chicago.”
Sneakerhead University set up workshops at both the Bears’ offices in downtown Chicago and Halas Hall in Lake Forest in November and spent hours helping staff members bring their creative ideas to life.
A large part of Sneakerhead’s mission is to uplift and appreciate everyone’s culture, so working with such a diverse group of people, who all had unique connections to their charities of choice, was a special moment for Belvin and her team.
“When you see somebody with sneakers on, whether they’re a huge fan or not, it tells you a little bit about that person,” Belvin said. “I think sneakers are one of the main things on our body that no matter what tax bracket you are, everybody can relate to it. So I think that’s the fun part about it.
“I love going through the customization process because no matter what, what they’re creating today is a one of one and we get to see people’s personalities and what’s important shine true to them. It’s really exciting to see how these charities manifest onto these sneakers and see the meaning that it holds to each of these people here.”
