Feetz Collaborates with PENSOLE Footwear Academy to Usher in the Next Generation of Designers

August 18, 2015 | By Business Wire News

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.

Feetz, the “digital cobbler” reinventing the world of footwear through smartphones and 3D printers, has inspired students in a PENSOLE Footwear Design Academy master class through the FN Platform Challenge. The four-week master class allowed thirty aspiring footwear designers from around the world to create shoes that can impact the industry. The six students of the Feetz team were inspired by the opportunity to change the world through design, seeing that the future is shoes that truly adapt to the human body.

As a footwear industry veteran with brands such as LA Gear, Skechers and Nike, D’Wayne Edwards founded the PENSOLE Academy to fill a need in the industry and give young designers a tuition-free opportunity to learn the entire footwear design process, not just the dress shoe sector. The school has placed over 130 graduates in prominent companies in the industry, including Adidas, Under Armour, New Balance, Converse and more. Edwards found a kindred spirit in Feetz founder Lucy Beard and simply “fell in love” with her entrepreneurial spirit and desire to make a difference in the world.

“Feetz provided the opportunity for tomorrow’s generation to design the shoes of the future,” said Edwards. “As more industries take the Feetz route and give the consumer the power to choose what they want, companies will develop a new relationship with their consumers.”

“Customization is the future of the footwear industry — I dream of designing a shoe one day that responds and adapts to an individual’s physiology, movement and environment,” says Edwards. “To be able to manipulate the color of a shoe based on what the consumer is wearing or where they are when they wear them…this kind of adaptable technology is not yet available but I believe it’s on its way to becoming a reality.”

Feetz is honored to play a part in the FN Platform Challenge and the impact that PENSOLE is making on the footwear industry. “I love being able to inspire the next generation of designers to think outside of traditional methods and create futuristic footwear that can impact not only the industry but the world,” said Beard. “I’m so excited for the work PENSOLE is doing now and the innovative things I know they’ll do in the future.”

About Feetz: Feetz is the first 3D shoe factory of its kind. Located in Chattanooga, Tenn., the “SizeMe” footwear technology personally fits shoes to every customer: 7 billion sizes, 1 for everyone in the world. Feetz owns five patents and a proprietary, full stack 3D printing platform that combines additive manufacturing, a process called photogrammetry, responsive materials and customizable biomechanics software to deliver fully customized shoes. Feetz.com.

About PENSOLE: PENSOLE’s “learn by doing” curriculum teaches students the entire footwear design process: inspiration, concept-development, design process, problem solving, materials, business, networking, marketing, and branding. PENSOLE features the most sought after faculty in the footwear world, comprised of both young professional designers and established footwear design leaders from the top brands, with more than 100 years combined experience to guide students in their professional development.