SOLE SISTERS : JANELLE

The sneaker industry has made major strides in increased women representation in the past decade. There’s a rise of women in creative positions and they’re taking the community in the right direction. We’ve gotten over the “shrink it and pink it” era and have seen improvements in sizing and color ways.

We now have a seat at the table that is diverse, but it isn’t fully inclusive yet. Instead of our influences and experiences being told, it’s usually focused on the collection and accomplishments. In shining a light on our stories, it could change the way women enter and move in the community.

We sat down with 4 women to highlight a woman’s point of view - from the sneaker journey to our community and influences. Our second feature is Janelle.

The Origin Story

Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, Janelle, has been breaking boundaries in the sneaker game since 2010. She says “I was that generation after NikeTalk and before the big hypebeast boom.”

Janelle opened up about her start in the community, “I started getting my sneaker money by baking cookies and selling them at school for 2 for $1 and big candies for $1. My first pair of Jordans were the wolf gray fives that I put on layaway, but the first shoe, where I was like, “dang, I really want these shoes” were the New Love AJ1’s. At the time, I was also a big roller skater and I thought these shoes would be so dope to put on a pair of roller skates with wood wheels—years go by and I end up doing exactly that.”

Breaking The Mold

Janelle likes what she likes, from Nike to Vans to Reebok—she doesn’t limit herself to exclusive or hyped shoes. Her collection reflects who she is, a kid at heart who uses her creativity to express everything she’s into. She has devised pages, podcasts, and brands that are dedicated to her passion for sneakers, all things Disney, and claiming her sexuality.

"I definitely want to incorporate everything I love into everything I do. I started this page called Lace Hoppers that was basically sneakers that I saw at Disneyland, and just asking people; why were you at the park? What's the significance of this shoe? Why did you wear this shoe today?...

I also started this brand called Hours. I realized that a lot of females don't like to talk about sex because we always get a bad connotation. We've seen sex sell with sneakers. You see it all the time — women posing with sneakers or the half naked girl in the tub with all these shoes. [However] sometimes I have felt like something sex positive that I've posted might be why x brand/site hasn't hit me up in a while—like they don’t want to associate themselves with me because I am so open about it. I started Hours for people to have a safe space to be as open they want to be, and a place to be somewhat educational."

Women in the Industry and the Future

“I feel like brands are also paying a lot more attention to women within the community. I felt this big shift within the past couple months, there’s a lot more women who are trying to push women's representation onto brands and all these women in the sneaker community trying to help each other out so we have a voice. No more mood boards—put us in the room...

I can definitely see the shift now to where it's more of an industry. At one point, we were all that new girl just starting out. I made it a point to know what I was talking about before I opened my mouth and said anything, because I didn't want to make myself look like I didn't put in the work. I feel like that history is so lost with shoes that no one really cares anymore. When I was coming up like everyone was like,” Oh, do you know this? Do you know that?” Now, the storytelling is a lost love and I feel like that's the biggest disconnect."

Photography and Interview by Ramona Matias