The debut of Serious Player Only (SPO) was undoubtedly controversial, and its emergence indirectly initiated the era of internet celebrity shoe-making. After the storm, things return to calm, and many brands have come and gone like a flash in the pan. Following the Player series, SPO is about to launch the Ranger series. What is the design philosophy behind the Ranger, which sheds the label of light and quick style? And how does SPO persist in innovation behind the mixed reviews? Let’s see what SPO has to say.
How was the first series of 42½ products born?
I am a die-hard fan of KOBE shoes, spanning 20 years. I believe that the KOBE series has the best practical performance and balance, so I hope to create shoes that surpass the KOBE series, which is the origin of the PLAYER series.
From the establishment of SPO to now, many new shoe brands have emerged, but most have gradually faded away. Can you share some entrepreneurial experiences in brand building?
It’s not about sharing experiences; we have also been feeling our way through the river, as we are in a highly competitive industry. But what we have always insisted on is focusing all our energy on the product. We believe that a good product (performance, design, innovation) is the best advertisement. So we will do our best to make every product, every color scheme, and then iterate through continuous user feedback.
What is the most challenging issue in the product iteration process?One is cost, as the development and investment costs of shoes are still very high, involving different sizes, and we still have a very large size distribution, so often a small functional modification requires a significant financial investment. The second is innovation, how to look at the present from the future, and how to constantly negate oneself with a critical spirit, which is very challenging.
Can you reveal the next generation plan for the Player series?
The next generation of Player currently only has a basic direction, which is to see if we can create the lightest basketball shoe in history. I personally have a certain obsession with lightweight design.
What is the design concept of the new product Ranger?
The combination of basketball shoes and fashion shoes.
This new product changes the previous light and agile shape of the product, giving a more stable visual effect. Why is there such a change in design strategy?
We believe that a brand will have its own expression, and within the same brand, different series carry different expressions for different scenarios. So the RANGER series is about thinking about how to use exaggerated techniques and different materials to interpret what a practical basketball shoe can express.
This product uses a leather upper, so what adjustments have been made in the design to ensure breathability?
Thank you to the SeriousPlayerOnly team for sharing. Here, we also announce SPO’s new shoe series Ranger, which adopts a completely new design language in terms of styling. Please look forward to it. Finally, the editor wants to say that although internet celebrity shoe-making is just a trend, if the boat doesn’t capsize after the wind, it naturally has its brand way. As an audience, we should also learn from their strengths or think more, such as how we would design it if it were us. More thinking does no harm, and the sneaker market needs more brands like this to bring more novel designs, thereby continuously stimulating innovation in the industry.
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