Good Morning POU! TGIF!
Today’s featured designer is the founder of his own sneaker company in addition to a top creator for Converse.
Kris Wright
Kris Wright’s career in the athletic shoe industry began while a student at Clark Atlanta University. An internship with Reebok set him on a very successful path to becoming a creative force for the Converse brand.
After receiving his degree in Business Administration & Marketing in 1998, Kris rose quickly to manage the Reebok Music Footwear Division that saw the highly successful launch of the S. Carter and G-Unit Collections in 2003 and 2004.
In 2005, Kris ventured headfirst into creating his own company Jhung Yuro (Young Hero). The inspiration for the company is based on his travels throughout the world. The name was a nickname by Kris’s crew of friends because of his affinity for traveling around the world. It began with just Yuro initially but then was dubbed Jhung Yuro because he was the youngest of his group of friends.
He used his business planning expertise and concepting skills to design, develop, manufacture, merchandise and distribute Jhung Yuro Footwear. Jhung Yuro entered the marketplace with a soft launch in the Fall of 2005 at two, high-end fashion boutiques in New York City. After a successful launch, Jhung Yuro surpassed $1.5 million in sales within the first 14 months of it’s founding.
According to Kris, the desire to start his own company was brought about by wanting to create a brand that reflected a global street culture that possessed a niche for the urban trend setter who seeks to express their individuality from a not so main stream source. Initially the shoes where all hand made which gave them an advantage over the mass produced giant corporations market.
In May of 2008, he formed a distribution partnership between Jhung Yuro and Headgear Inc. (The owners of Blac Label Premium, Blac Label Pink, Antik Denim and Taverniti So Jeans), after which Headgear acquired a 50% stake in the Jhung Yuro Footwear brand. Kris became the head of footwear which gave him creative carte blanche over both brands.
Pictures from the launch of Jhung Yuro shoes at a Sneaker Lounge in Melville (Melville is a Bohemian suburb of Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa)
Obviously when you have talent like this, the industry takes notice and in 2011, Nike recruited Kris like a number 1 draft pick, to join its Jordan Brand. In 2014, Nike made Kris the Senior Global Director for Converse which has seen a remarkable resurgence. Sales for Converse topped $1.5 billion in 2014 and projected to grow by 18% in 2015.
