Source: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/societynineshoe/society-nine-womens-boxing-shoe
Site: https://societynine.com/
Yesterday, my daughter and I turned on the Sean Fagan 20 Minute Muay Thai workout instead of running or lifting weights. My daughter is 12, but she’s participated in UFC training with a pro as the leader of her class. My boxing and training began in the Navy, but is really just a workout routine based on old training methods and self taught exercise. I do know enough about technique to ensure my daughter understands how to punch and land kicks by rotating her hips and landing with the shin… enough of that. During our workout yesterday I had a notification from a Twitter post. The timing was interesting.
After we finished our workout I asked my daughter if she wanted to hit the bag for an additional 10 minutes. She said no because she hates how her hands shift inside of her gloves. The notification on my phone happened to be from PDX Native/Blatino/PENSOLE/Banker/Connector… you get the picture, Stephen Green. He was sharing info about SOCIETY NINE a startup born via Kickstarter. The company launched a women’s specific boxing glove successfully and now they were entering the footwear space with a shoe designed by designer Tuan Le, and developed by former designer and current Deadstock Coffee Shop owner Ian Williams. The Kickstarter is currently running, so I’m sharing the post, but in typical fashion I always look at things a bit deeper.
This is the Society Nine Eos (EE-os) High Top, named after the Greek goddess of the dawn. This shoe was designed with inspiration from the women of our community.
My first immediate thought when I see a project like this is how niche it is and what happens when the Kickstarter is over. When I saw the picture of Eos I thought Heydey:
I wasn’t sold on Heydey, but those shoes were for weight training. The shape is what sparked my connection. Boxing shoes are extremely limited in scope, but within that community there is tremendous opportunity. As I thought about Society Nine (named after Title IX, the legislation extending funding and equality to women athletes) I realized this was a brand that has a long-term opportunity for growth.
I praise boxing as one of the disciplines that is less impactful than running, and in all honesty easier to begin an exercise routine. Society Nine has the ability to show Lululemon styled growth and it’s possible because the time and effort the founder Lynn Le places into making sure the product is right, is the effort needed to introduce meaningful equipment that changes lives.
More important, bigger brands have failed to see the opportunities in boxing and MMA. I’ve written countless articles on Under Armour’s failure to utilize athletes they had who could help the brand utilize a Niche-out marketing concept:
Under Armour Can Win From The “Niche-Out” Canelo Alvarez vs Julio Cesar Chavez Jr
In the post on the link above I discussed how UA could capitalize. They didn’t and Canelo is no longer with the company. Boxing and MMA training = empowerment. Yesterday, I hit the bag with my daughter, I realized I need to buy her better gloves so she’ll departure to hit the bag for longer times. What I also learned yesterday is that although she runs track, when we take time to use the gloves and mitts or we cross train and do teeps and elbow strikes she feels strong. Society Nine has a lane and this next step with a boxing shoe from the brand could be the move that translates into a major play within a niche area.
Nike Air Max 1 Platinum Tint/Dark Obsidian FD9082-002.
