Bigger Than Tennis is all about culture.

Its co-founder Matt Tomamichel recently began cooperation with a footwear and clothing brand EQLZ in the colours of the new Bigger Than Tennis x EQLZ 247 “North Star” basketball shoes. Unlike last yr’s collaboration with Jordan Brand, the sneakers were designed by academy students.

There are sneakers sold online at Corporate Got Em for $180 and a part of the proceeds will go to BTS Academy.

The BTS Academy is a free, three-week summer session for 14 highschool students. They receive roughly 60 hours of programming. This yr’s session focused on branding, marketing, materials, apparel and footwear design. As a part of the ultimate project, students collaborated to create their very own brands. Each day they focused on different topics and listened to guest lecturers who work in the sector.

Founded in 2018, EQLZ has established itself within the performance footwear segment. When creating the most recent 247 model, the corporate wanted to create basketball shoes that will be an extension of the human foot. In particular, the design team includes several industry veterans Aaron Cooperwho, during his 25 years at Nike, designed distinctive basketball shoes for basketball stars LeBron James, Scottie Pippen, Kevin Garnett and others.

Tomamichel first connected with Cooper on Instagram a few years ago. “I showed him respect and told him what I was doing here, and he really liked it,” Tomamichel said. “(Cooper) basically gave us every chance. He said, “I believe in you, I trust you, where you are going.” The design legend spent a while in Cincinnati before asking Tomamichel if the academy wanted to produce the shoe.

“Of course I do,” Tomamichel said. “We didn’t plan it (this way), but yes, let’s do it.”

In an email to Andscape, Cooper said programs like Bigger Than Tennis are “extremely important” to the following generation of footwear professionals. He believes that children need more equal opportunities and tries to help wherever he can.

In June, the designer brought a white version of the sneakers to the academy. After the lecture, he tasked the scholars with creating a story and color scheme. “It was a hands-on job for Cooper,” Tomamichel said. “He came in, taught it, and the kids just took it in.”

Cooper said multiple teams of scholars worked together to present their ideas, and at the tip everyone voted on the one they felt most spoke to their needs.

As a part of the design process, students also had to persuade all the class that their design was possible. “If they still had any questions or needed help after a thorough Google search, I was there to help them and provide answers,” Cooper said. Because he mentioned the “North Star” several times during his presentation, students expanded on this concept, identifying the shoe’s name as a tenet to help align with what “really matters to you.”

Kevin Watkins and Briana Davis

Bigger Than x EQLZ 247 “North Star” shoes.

Kevin Watkins and Briana Davis

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The shades of purple used on the shoe are intended to refer to the night sky.

Kevin Watkins and Briana Davis

The EQLZ 247 “North Star” sneaker features Co-branding on the heel strap. The sparkles on the shoe’s outsole symbolize the celebrities, while the blue and pink additions represent the gases within the sky.

The Bigger Than Tennis x EQLZ 247s “North Star” is black with shades of purple to represent the night sky. Sparkles on the shoe’s outsole symbolize stars, while blue and pink were added to represent gases within the sky.

When the scholars showed Tomamichel what they’d, he was impressed. After the pitch, Cooper began his development phase. “He basically designs everything in the shoe,” Tomamichel said. “He knew what would work and what wouldn’t work, and then he put it together.”

Quinn Smith, a student on the academy, said selecting colours to convey the message was a difficult a part of the design process. “(We wanted) to make sure that the message could be interpreted without having to say too much or that there wasn’t too much to say,” she said.

Another student, Chase Harpold, shares her sentiment. “It was difficult to translate everyone’s ideas into sneakers and create an easy-to-wear and cohesive color that clearly represented our story.” Harpold said he knew the project was complete when “everyone agreed it was the best final product we could design.”

Samiya Oyeyemi, who worked with Smith and Harpold, found the colour palette easy. The real challenge was constructing the shoe. “We had so many different ideas and inspirations and we all wanted to put an aspect of our beliefs into the shoe,” she said.

All three agreed that the ultimate product closely reflected their initial design goals. Smith said their success is just not just a victory for the academy, “but for people all over the world.” Oyeyemi found that the efforts of designing a shoe paled as compared to working with her peers. “Even when we had moments where we struggled to come up with the concept of the shoe, we had a great time working as a team and designing it,” she said.

Cooper understands the ability of sneaker design. “I was inspired to become Nike’s first intern in 1994 because I also believe it is bigger than sneakers,” he said. “I have seen how shoes inspire communities to come together, share stories and break down barriers.”

The feedback from students and the opportunities it has created are a large a part of why Tomamichel founded Bigger Than Tennis. As an adopted person, he considers himself very lucky to have family and friends. His tenet is to support others and provides back to society.

“I want people to feel that their dreams can come true,” he said. “They haven’t got to live within the shadows and say, ‘Man, I’ve all the time wanted to do that, but I’ve never done it.’ I prefer to encourage quite than tell someone they shouldn’t do something. I’ve heard way an excessive amount of about it.”

Executive director Natalie Morean said each student can only attend the academy once, but she supports children after they complete this system. Former students return as peer mentors for current students, and the academy provides other volunteer opportunities all year long.

“We don’t want to spend three weeks with you and then push you out the door,” Morean said. “We want to consciously decide how we create relationships with students.”

Bigger Than Tennis is a nonprofit organization that relies on fundraising, corporate sponsorships and grants. Morean said the cash goes primarily to students. The organization feeds them on daily basis, takes them on field trips and offers them an iPad that they will keep after the three-week session.

The BTS Academy is positioned in Cincinnati, with plans to expand to Indianapolis and Dayton, Ohio. Tomamichela The corporation has themfootwear and clothing boutique, has locations in all three cities.

Morean wants “sustainable and intentional growth,” but believes they’ll proceed to limit the number of scholars to about 14. “I think it’s a really good choice,” she said. “It’s still a small enough place where you can get to know all the students individually… but as we continue to grow, I definitely think the capacity should expand as well.”

Tomamichel praised Morean for Bigger Than Tennis’ progress. “In 2020, I felt like people needed something positive. I started praying that Bigger Than Tennis would have a better structure to make everything work,” he said. “The next week I met Natalie and within two months she was a director.”

Morean, who earned a master’s degree in nonprofit management and leadership from the University of Georgia, has worked with students and youth programs for years. She shared her inspirations with laughter.

“I grew up as the oldest of four children and was always around my younger siblings,” she said. “I just really enjoyed being a big sister, maybe it will make me have a career.”