Conversations with Brandon Johnston

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Johnston

Hi Brandon, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hi, my name is Brandon Johnston and I am the Owner of Soul 2 Sole Creations (DBA: S2S Creations). I am a Raleigh native but moved away roughly 10 years ago to the outskirts of Milwaukee, Wisconsin for school. Prior to that I had worked in running specialty retail since the age of 15 which primarily helped me with understanding how the retail world of footwear retail works and it helped educate me on the anatomy of shoes. Fast forward to graduation from college and I was able to get a job working at one of the largest print companies in the United States. While I was there I was laid off due to COVID and decided to leverage my knowledge of footwear with my passion for teaching others. With the skills I had learned from my Marketing & Graphics degree as well as a 4 day shoemaking class I was able to take prior to COVID, I decided to advertise an online formatted class that taught people the basics of making an Air Jordan 1. The weekend I launched the class I made roughly $8,000 in profit and decided to reinvest that back into the company.

Once I was able to get more confident with commissions I was asked to make a pair of bespoke Air Jordan 1 Lows for PJ Tucker, the self-proclaimed Sneaker King of the NBA. PJ, a Raleigh native, was gifted a pair of Milwaukee Bucks Themed AJ1 Lows in honor of welcoming him to the city of Milwaukee after he had been traded to the Bucks. From there I started to grow my brand to where I had the opportunity to create another pair of bespoke sneakers for recent Gold Medalist, Jrue Holiday of the Boston Celtics (formerly a Milwaukee Bucks player). After several years of perfecting my craft and learning more and more about footwear construction, I was approached by the Milwaukee Brewers (MLB) to create 2 unique pairs of baseball cleats that were to be worn and auctioned off for charity due to Hispanic Heritage month. The cleats were made for Willy Adames and Freddy Peralta. The cleats both had themes that revolved around the players homes in the Dominican Republic as well as some of their childhood heroes like, The Flash, from DC Comics. My most recent project was to make 3 different bespoke sneakers for headliners for the festival known as Summerfest which happens at the end of June and into July 4th weekend in Milwaukee. The headliners were country music star Kane Brown, 4 time Grammy winner SZA, and lastly EDM artist Illenium.

In October of 2023 my wife and I moved back to Raleigh to be closer to family but also introduce the Triangle area to the world of custom footwear. We’ve set up a brick-n-mortar studio where people can take classes for how to make certain sneakers, pattern making, sneaker customization, or even have a consultation for their own 1 of 1 sneaker. Our goal is to empower people with the opportunity to be creative with their footwear but are also seeking to learn a new skill which could potentially help them achieve more ambitious career goals like working for a big footwear brand or maybe even starting their own.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Owning your own business is never a smooth road. I mean that in the best of ways though. Some days are easy and some are not but that is part of being a small business. I think the biggest struggle was showing people that this model is profitable and can be successful. Admittedly, my business is probably one of the most niche businesses that exists…but I believe that’s what makes it interesting or at least creates that sense of intrigue in a lot of people that maybe aren’t deemed “sneakerheads”. Besides that, growth and awareness are typically the hardest part for any niche business. My plan right now is to start at the grassroots level. This is the same tactic I used when I was living in Milwaukee and I found success but also I learned more than any college level business class will teach you. The grassroots approach is essentially me going out into the community in any capacity to try and build relationships with other local businesses that are similar or can be paired with what I offer. Once a relationship has been established it makes it a lot easier to spread the word that S2S Creations is a thing. For example, we have an upcoming partnership with NC State Universities Craft Center where we will be offering the chance to learn how to make your very own pair of Birkenstock sandals using Italian leathers and traditional shoe making techniques. My goal with this is to leverage the attraction the Crafts Center gets to help raise awareness that our studio also offers other classes outside of the sandal making theme.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I create bespoke 1 of 1 sneakers for people/organizations looking to tell stories through the medium of sneakers and other types of footwear.

Primarily we specialize in decon/recon, short for deconstruction/reconstruction, which is the practice of taking apart a retail pair of shoes and reconstructing them with premium materials and hand made craftsmanship.

Right now, we offer 2 main categories: Class/Workshops & Customization Services.

Customization Services refers to individual projects for customers or business clients. Example: you want your own 1 of 1 hand made sneakers or your business wants to create a set of custom shoes to gift to employees, bring to trade shows, gift to artists or athletes, etc…

Classes/Workshops contain a 3 Day Decon/Recon Sneaker Making Workshop or 3-6 hour long Paint + Patch Class.

3 Day Decon/Recon Workshop is where we take you through the steps of creating your very own sneaker. We teach you everything from sewing, cutting leather, pattern development, lasting, and more.

Paint + Patch has 3 different packages. See details below:

1) Basic Paint + Patch Class: You get to bring in your own pair of shoes and we teach you how to paint on them and you also get to swap out specific panels of the shoe with your own choice of unique leathers to choose from at our studio. Once you’ve chosen the leather panel you want swapped out we patch it on with a specialized sewing machine.

2) Premium Paint + Patch Class: This is the exact same as the Basic Paint + Patch but you unlock more options for leather that is a little more rare to find.

3) Exotic Paint + Patch Class: This is the same as the Premium offering but unlocks the option to use authentic alligator or python for your shoes.

I think what sets S2S Creations apart from the rest is the attention to detail and I don’t mean just in the quality of the work but I like to make sure everyone I work with is taken care of as if they were family. Some call it customer service but I’ve never liked the word “customer”. It feels transactional and seems like there is nothing special about just being a “customer”. I’d rather replace that word with personal because everything we do is rooted within the individual…even if its just teaching a class…the classes are tailored to the student and never to the needs/wants of the teacher. Same goes for projects for individuals or companies. We always have to remember the “why”…meaning; why are we doing this? Is it to make something cool? Is it made to be inspirational? Is is both? I think a lot of other companies in various industries fail to see it this way and that is something we want to change.

Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
This is a tough one….but this answer may act as a bit of a cop out. I don’t have 1 specific childhood memory but rather a collection of memories from my childhood that helped shape who I am and what my business represents today. I was extremely fortunate to have travelled a decent amount when I was a child and at the time I wouldn’t have been able to give you this answer but looking back I am thankful for the opportunity to have traveled as much as I have because it has helped me understand different perspectives on life, family, opportunity, and an overall appreciation for life in general. It sounds cliche but it is 100% true and I encourage anyone that has the means to travel even if it is within the US to do so because it will teach you a lot about people and life.

Pricing:

• Paint + Patch Classes are as follows: Basic = $100, Premium = $180, Exotic = $250
• 3 Day Shoemaking Workshop: Starts at $1,000. Highest class offering is: $1,250
• Build-A-Birk Workshop: $280
• Bespoke 1 of 1 Sneaker Customization Service: Starts off at $150 and go beyond $1,200 for a full decon/recon

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.s2screations.com
• Instagram: MAIN ACCOUNT: https://www.instagram.com/s2s_creations/
  WORKSHOP AND CLASS ACCOUNT: https://www.instagram.com/s2s_creator_hub/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557544597190