New Running brand and footwear design - SKORA

I think the German ones are called Bemis welders.

Thanks R, for answering Qs.

The 1pc midsole /outsole, are you talking about the new SS13 model with IBR?

IBR stands for?
I got confused from the wrap around look of sole. I am guessing here (most of shoes have) outsole with rubber & midsole with EVA or composite. What is the thickness of the sole together?
How tread pattern is designed …aesthetics vs functionality ? or both together.
SS13 has better tread because of through flex groove than FW12 ? Or this is less mattered because of the thickness of the midsole?
The insole provides support for the arch? Ortho? Flat?
Heel counter is replaced by cup sole design?
Upper used in Base Ro1 : Vamp is in durable nylon mesh & heel area is in cozy air mesh ?

R,

When at Umbro we were working with Pittards leather. They said and shown us your Skora shoe. How has this upper worked with the stretching side of things as we found this a problem in football boots. I suppose football boots require a lot more foot movement etc which equates to the stretching

I previously used Pittards while at hummel on football boots 2006-08. As far as i know we were the first to use the goat on football boots. It’s how I first got to know them. Goat does stretch but at hummel we were able to overcome the issues with different combos of reinforcement. Took a bit of experimentation to get it right. I don’t recall the exact combo but I know there’s a post on my first pullover blog that shows the inside.

Also requires a good pattern maker taking into account stretch, correct cutting (leather stretches more across width of the backbone than head to toe) and correct lasting tension.

Using it on SKORA running shoes we never had issues. Running shoes have much less lateral forces when in use so less stretch and runners don’t seem to be as concerned with such a snug fit. The stretch is also good to some degree as it forms to your foot.

R

It’s great to see Skora take off in your hands R, congrats on what you’ve done!

It’s been cool to hear snippets about your processes too… I’d love to hear more about how you crafted the brand language - It’d be a great Core77 article!

I’ve put together a mini case-study about one of the new shoes, CORE.


You can find it here: (PDF link)

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/2074253/DC_SKORA_CORE_case_study_03.pdf

An overview:


Some process highlights:


I also designed the new website recently launched (http://www.skorarunning.com). Working on putting together some content from that design process.

R

Impressive process and product Richard. I remember your first posts about this brand, before anything even launched. It’s cool to see it come to life. I saw the shoes for the first time at the Winter Outdoor Retailer Show in Salt Lake City earlier this year. Great quality in person, nice to see and hold the product first-hand.

The tape-ups on the last are one of my favorite parts of the process. Question… Once you finish the tape-up, do you typically send pictures of it to the factory with some dimensions, or send the actual thing, or use it some other way? Just curious on how you use that tool to achieve the best results.

Hi Phillip,

I typically send the actual tape up to the factory, along with my illustrator specs that have callouts. The combination of tape up on the last and the notes and specifics in the specs is a good start at a first pullover, though no matter what, a lot of changes need to be made on the first samples. Often it’s a combination of design changes (lines that look good on the tape-up don’t look so great in real life) and construction changes (adjustments to allow for better placement of seams, easier production, reduction of parts, etc.).

With designs like these that are so asymmetrical I use the tape up as a 3d sketch. It’s a lot easier to sketch on a tape up than try to draw a bunch of different views that have to line up. I’ll draw maybe one side view to get an overall plan, then do the rest in 3d right on the last.

R

SKORA FW13 just dropped. Some pretty exciting new stuff. In addition to new colors we have some new special products coming out.

PHASE-X is an all reflective style (upper overlays as well as mesh, laces, etc.).





FORM Camo is a limited edition product. 500prs available worldwide (per gender). Material is a special CIG (Custom Image Generation) Goat Leather product by Pittards that is used by the UK and Canadian military. The pattern is dyed right into the leather so doesn’t wear off (used for the gloves worn by the guys who jump out of helicopters and slide down ropes, so you know it’s tough!).


Mens Collection

Womens Collection

all at http://www.skorarunning.com

R

A brand new shoe is dropping soon. More details and pics to come, but for now, check out a sneak preview of some of the development process.

I went through over 20 paper mockups on this one, to position the halftone pattern…!

Lote more here:

http://skorafit.tumblr.com
password is GETFIT


R



I’ve always been a sucker for halftones. I love the color combinations that they (you) have been putting together for this brand. Im curious as to how you guys are finalizing your color selections? Does marketing/product development give you the direction (color pallete), or do they leave it completely up to you?

Also, nice mockups. Are you using pepekura to output the cut/fold marks?

I am marketing/product development/design/strategy/colors+materials :slight_smile: Color options start with my concepts, then review with 2-3 people, then finalize. Then everything changes once I get first samples…

Paper mockups are mode using the base pattern received from the factory (after my pattern review), pattern created in illustrator, cut out and hacked together with an exactor and tape. Cuts are all made as needed in no particular place, just to get it somewhat smooth on the last. As the actual material stretches on lasting and paper doesn’t it’s all a bit approximate.

Some more (paper version #16 and first pullover)

Lots more on the tumblr!



R


R- This is one of my favorites since the launch design. Its nice how you used the mid foot support from the Phase (?) internally. The dark pictures with the light source inside the shoe (on the tumblr) make for a great visual+story. Love this sole unit too, glad to see it make another appearance.

Great work as always. Very impressive what you have been able to do with the brand. Your marketing/product development/design/strategy/colors+materials hat seems to be fitting well :wink:

-Matt

Thanks for the love, Matt. Once more pics and details are released I’ll be sure to share. It’s a pretty fresh design and early testing reviews have been awesome. The design was directly influenced by the new “3d” printing technique that enable a dynamic support pattern, hence the gradient halftone. Tweaked some other stuff too on the outsole/midsole/insole.



R

Oops. Forgot to follow-up after last season’s launch.

Anyhow, FW14 just dropped, and some exciting new colorways and updates to all styles, including the new FIT mentioned above. Special colors include the Digital Camo leather FORM and the Stealth reflective PHASE-X (my faves).

Check it out.

R







They are my favorite. Hard to see, but the mesh is also reflective as are the laces. Here’s an actual pic of me wearing them straight from the iPhone, no photoshop.

R

R, these shoes look amazing. I’m with yo, the 3m’s are my fave. I live in a very dimly lit neighbourhood so they would be great to be running in.

Latest style dropped today.

TEMPO

100% new upper design, tooling, materials. TEMPO is a moderately cushioned neutral running shoe designed for middle-long road distance (though has also been used by our wear testers very successfully on trail, including a few Trail Ultras).

Upper is a super lightweight and breathable mono mesh with a no-sew microfiber internal arch band and no-sew taping reinforcement across the vamp and eye stay. Like all SKORA shoes, it has asymmetric lacing and a tongue that is fixed on one side.

Midsole/Outsole is a hybrid design. It’s a CM EVA with co-molded rubber lugs for a very lightweight, but still durable outsole with good traction. The outsole is zero drop and rounded like all the other SKORA tooling units.

Here’s a few pics, will dig up some more process pics. Just happy to finally be able to show this. Have been working on it and testing it in my own runs for over a year.

R





Some detail pics.

R



I’m really impressed of the steep advance of the technical manufacturing level, and the short period of time it’s taken. Upper looks fantastic!

Never had the pleasure of trying them, or even seeing them first person.
Are you moving towards a thicker/ more cushioned midsole on all models, or is this one unique?

Did you manage to shave a lot of weight by decreasing the amount of rubber on the outsole, or was it a flexibility a bigger concern?

Big fan of asymmetric lacing. Great work!