Salehe Bembury continues to stand 10 toes down when it comes to his independence. He has revealed he turned down an opportunity with Nike to launch his own brand.
As perHypebeast, Salehe Bembury is using his voice to inspire the design community. The normally selective creative sat down for an interview with the Wall Street Journal. During the in-depth feature, he discussed his journey from his early days at Payless to being one of the most sought-after designers in the world. The notoriety has allowed him to work with labels such as New Balance and, most recently, Crocs. But the New York Native made it clear that his newest venture is what matters to him most. “It’s always an honor to work with brands, but I don’t necessarily get to bring to fruition exactly what I’d like,” he explained. “My own brand will be 100% my vision. I will get to build the community that I want to build, and have the conversations that I want to have and tell the stories that I want to tell.”
He also revealed that Nike invited him to their headquarters in Oregon a couple years back to discuss a potential partnership. While Salehe Bembury didn’t get into many details, it is speculated that the deal would have allowed him to work on several different high-profile projects throughout the Nike portfolio. He ultimately passed on the offer, saying the partnership would not allow him the flexibility to bring his dream to life.
Recently, he announced the launch of his own brand, SPUNGE, and the debut of his Osmosis sneaker. He detailed the meaning of the name in an Instagram post. “For 15 years, I’ve worked across every corner of the footwear industry; learning, observing, absorbing. Each chapter taught me something different, how shoes are made, how brands are built, and how culture moves,” he wrote. “SPUNGE is the result of it all. Everything I’ve taken in, finally expressed in my own language. This brand exists to create the kind of freedom I was always searching for. A space to explore, experiment, and evolve. A shoe to do stuff in.”
