Charlotte students create sneaker with ASICS

What’s happening: You can buy the sneakers students from the local charter school created with ASICS and The Whitaker Grp, the retail group behind boutique brands like Social Status. 

Details: Eternal Summer, as the shoes are called, are low-top sneakers. 

• They’re a GEL-LYTE V and cost $140. 
• Also, they are only available through Social Status, with 1,500 pairs in each color-way: transparent yellow and Moroccan blue; nimbus cloud and pistachio green.

Flashback: The class, which ultimately resulted in the creation of the custom sneaker, began during the pandemic. Taliyah Brooks, an ASICS track and field athlete, led the class.

• Students (from the upper school, mostly high schoolers) learned everything from design to marketing and branding.

What’s next: Charlotte Lab School will open a boutique called The Flex in January. Customers will be able to visit by appointment only.

• The Flex will collaborate with local designers on pieces for the boutique, which will pair with the sneakers. 
• The goal is to expose students to entrepreneurship opportunities at a young age.

What they’re saying: “Hopefully the boutique becomes a place where students can learn about what it means to be an entrepreneur, but it could provide additional opportunities for companies and businesses to partner with Charlotte youth,” Ricky Singh, head of Charlotte Lab’s Upper School, tells Axios. 

• He also hopes it “encourages other schools to rethink their spaces.”