It should be to no one's surprise we finally did a story on Tony Hardman, who won our 2004 KicksGuide Rendering of the Year award last year. Below is Tony's story in his own words:

      1990 was a turning point in my life. As a sophomore in high school, I found my true love for the game of basketball, my admiration for the man that would change that game forever-Michael Jordan, and my love for shoes as an art form with the release of the Air Jordan V. I had contemplated many careers throughout my childhood including acting, make-up effects artist, and animation. But when I held that shoe in my hands, I knew I had found the perfect combination of sports and my creative drive. I knew I wanted to be a footwear designer. I mean, what could be better than millions of people wearing and enjoying the comfort and protection of your art?! And I truly believe that knowing what you want to do is half the battle. So many of my peers went off to college to pursue “business” degrees, yet you would ask them what they wanted to do after graduation and they really had no idea. I knew.

      The small Wisconsin town I grew up in was not exactly a Mecca of fashion or design. In fact, I was always the strange white kid who listened to hip-hop (which was uncommon for white kids in ’85) and looked to NYC for styles and trends. I was certainly never one to care about what others thought, and have always lived my life on my own terms. Coming out of high school, I could not find any information about footwear design, so I decided that Fashion Design was the closest thing going. I started my first few years taking some basic courses with plans of eventually transferring to a specialized art school where I could really learn the meat and potatoes of the trade. Unfortunately, I lost focus along the way and moved to Texas to pay off some bills and things of that nature. Well, life took over and I found myself engaged and living an unfulfilled life in retail management. But I never lost my love for designing kicks. Each year, before the release of the new Air Jordan, I would have a dream that I had met with Tinker Hatfield, and he was showing me the new shoe. I would awake with both disappointment (that it didn’t really happen) and excitement as I tried to translate the foggy memories into the next Jordan, just to see how close I could get to the real thing! Needless to say, Tinker continued to dominate me year after year! LOL.

      After 8 years in the Lone Star State, I became stagnated and needed a change in life. I knew I was becoming distracted by partying and friends, and broke it off with my fiancée because she refused to ever move out of her home state (where there were no opportunities to design shoes). I decided to move Denver, Colorado (with the intent of getting back in school) and found myself in a U-haul driving through the mountains within 2 weeks. With my recently purchased computer and lots of isolation time, I began to rekindle the flames that would eventually scorch a path to my long-awaited career. When I first saw Jason Petrie’s work on Niketalk, it affected me in the same way that MJ’s game affected my vision of the game of basketball. It not only opened my eyes to what design could be, but also how it should be done. He was very receptive to my passion and began answering my bazillion silly questions about the business over several months of emails. Thanks, J. I still owe you one!

      At this time I was also posting as much work on Niketalk as I could. Though a lot of the reactions were initially harsh, it was the best way to get an honest opinion from people who really knew a good shoe when they saw one. I was determined to win their respect in the form of one the most difficult of all designs- an Air Jordan. And somehow I managed to do it in the Air Jordan XIX DRC. Not only did I finally gain the respect of many on NT, but apparently that of outsiders viewing the site as well. I was contacted by Italian designer, Denis Dekovic (a former colleague of AP’s at Fila) who was impressed with my passion and abilities. He provided me with a list of contacts and broke the door to the footwear design industry wide open for me! It couldn’t have been a better opportunity! I began to email many of the designers who I had grown up admiring, including Wilson Smith and Aaron Cooper from Nike fame. They were both very honest and open to helping me pursue my dreams. In the summer of 2003, I began preparing a book to send as a submission for employment at Nike. For 6 months I continued working 50 hours a week, only to come home and draw many times until 8 in the morning. By the time I had finished the book, AC had relocated to Europe and my main contact at the Swoosh was now gone. As fate would have it, this was the very same month that a good friend of mine finally got his big shot on campus- Alphaproject had just accepted a position with Nike!

      I told Jason of my plans to send my submission to Coop, and was looking for a new plan of attack. That’s when he put me in touch with “a guy who was looking to reinfect the campus with love”- D’Wayne Edwards. I have to say that DE is one of the nicest guys you could ever hope to meet, and without his recognition of my passion and dedication, I would not be where I am today. Thank you, D’Wayne.

      After sending the book to D, he seemed receptive to the work, but the chances of breaking into Nike without some experience or a degree looked bleak. Then, one of my wildest dreams came true! He offered me an opportunity to do some freelance projects on the side as a chance to learn the process and hone my skills along the way! Ironically, my footwear design career BEGAN at Jordan Brand! And what could be better than that?! 2004 was truly an amazing year. I won the KicksGuide rendering of the year award, worked on several JB concepts throughout, and on my first trip to Las Vegas, finally met several members of the Jordan team in person at a footwear convention called the WSA Show (A great place to shop your portfolio, by the way). A few months later, I would finally spend my first weekend in OZ, AKA the Nike campus. Talk about a kid in a candy store! It is truly amazing how kind and down to Earth everybody at Jordan is, considering their positions and talent. Thank you Jason, Octavio, Mike, Josiah and Suzette for your support.

      Unfortunately, dreams can’t last forever. With the Jordan experience under my belt, I knew I had to pursue a full-time position at a company that would respect my ambition and allow me some space to grow. I began preparing for the next WSA show by organizing my portfolio and emailing hundreds of companies in hopes that somebody would be willing to meet with me in Vegas. Out of all of the companies I contacted, I received only ONE response. But wait! There was an ad in the back of the latest Footwear News Magazine stating that Skechers USA was looking to interview people involved with footwear at the next show! And what a coincidence that DE once designed for Skechers! With D’s recommendation behind me, I was off to Vegas for what I hoped was the chance of a lifetime.

      After several interviews and reviews of my work, I felt that things had gone well. I honestly cried on the plane ride home with relief that all of the hard work I had been doing may have just finally paid off! No more than a week had passed when I got an offer from Skechers to relocate to Los Angeles and begin my career as a full-time junior footwear designer!

      My first few months here at Skechers have been absolutely amazing! We do so many different styles of footwear, including Ecko and 310 which many people don’t know. Not only that, but it is located a block from the beach and the people there are really great! It is definitely a dream come true. I have always said that once I get a job designing shoes, I would never have to work a day again the rest of my life, and it’s true! When you do what you love, it’s not really work! I am the first one in, and the last to leave everyday….and I wouldn’t want it any other way! I will keep you all posted when my designs begin to hit the shelves in spring of ’06.

      Again I have to thank Jason and D’Wayne, Wilson, AC, Denis D, Kicksguide and all the fellow NTers and designers who have supported my journey along the way. Without you all, none of this would have been possible. I am always willing to give back and help others the same way as it was done for me. If there are any aspiring kicks designers out there who need a hand or some friendly advice, feel free to hit me up at spacedigital23@yahoo.com. And if you are still wondering how to get into the footwear biz with no experience and no degree? The answer is simple: JUST DO IT! - TH