How a Sneaker Designer Spends His Day Transforming Nikes
Andy Martinez is the founder and sole producer of his bespoke shoe brand &e. He makes his signature shoe by hand-stitching sneaker bottoms — often Nike Air Force 1s — to cowboy boot shafts. What started as a one-off design for himself took off in 2018 when he got laid off from his job at a photography studio.
Mr. Martinez, 34, studied cartooning and film at Pratt Institute and found himself surrounded by fashionable people. Soon, they saw his shoes and wanted a pair of their own. His business snowballed online, and he has sold his shoes to celebrities, including the music artists SZA, Doechii, Don Toliver, Jessie Murph and Theophilus London, and the Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James.
'I'm wearing my shoes all the time, whether it's to go to church or the grocery store — this is my business card,' said Mr. Martinez, who makes each shoe by hand and sells them for about $600 to $650. 'Of course, cowboy boots have been there for ages. But I was really early on the cowboy trend that's been happening now, with Beyoncé and Bad Bunny and Post Malone, and all these random country bars are opening in the city. So now there's a market, and there's a new customer that's growing along with my product.'
Mr. Martinez's family immigrated from the Dominican Republic to the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and then to Washington Heights in 1994. For the last six years, he has lived in a one-bedroom-plus-office apartment on the Upper West Side, decorated with artwork by friends. He shares the space with his longhair American cat, Chase.
Mr. Martinez recently spent a Wednesday with The New York Times to share his routine on design days.
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