Stria Sport is the new lightweight performance basketball shoe hitting the market very soon.
“I really think everyone should follow their gut or a passion at least once in their life.”
Eric Porter shared that with me when we spoke on the phone yesterday morning.
I first heard of Eric a few years ago when he had himself a viral basketball moment. While he was playing at Lake Forest University, he made 107 consecutive three-pointers during a workout. The video made its way around the internet including onto this website.
Now, at 24 years old, Eric is doing something that’s been somewhat of a dream since he was about 12.
“Did I actually think it would happen? Probably not. But as a young basketball player obviously sneaker culture is huge in that scene… I was extremely picky with my shoes I would wear in games… I always wanted that performance-boosting shoe that was lightweight and comfortable and I just feel like some shoes were like that and then they would never release again.”
After he finished playing in college, Eric decided to find out what it would take to design his own basketball shoe.
“Obviously, for a shoe, I didn’t have the sneaker industry knowledge. So it was a lot of long hours of research and using my other resources in terms of picking other people’s brains…”
“I ended up getting in contact with a designer who was formerly with Nike. And we just kind of connected, we talked about shoes… I kind of told him my pitch a little bit and he loved the idea. And then we started creating a shoe for about six months kind of nailing the design. I told him I was looking for a performance-boosting shoe that focuses on extreme comfort and lightweight.”
The Stria Sport shoe will have eight neutral colorways, offering something for everyone. Eric stressed not having any “loud” colors or “fancy, crazy designs”. He describes the shoe has “extremely sleek” and one of the lightest basketball shoes on the market.
Eric has tested the shoe with athletes at different levels who have offered feedback throughout the process.
The shoe has also been reviewed and approved by the NBA. An official image of the shoe has not been released to the public yet, and a launch date will be coming soon.
While he admitted patience isn’t his strong suit, Eric has learned to enjoy the process in the meantime.
