While most kids I grew up with ran amok in their Nike’s, I always preferred adidas. Why? At the time, they were the only major footwear brand paying even a hint of attention to skateboarding. This was long before the days of X-Games. Before it became a highly profitable industry and before everyone else jumped on the bandwagon. They didn’t do so to become filthy rich (there were certainly better sectors for that), but rather to keep their finger on the pulse of the future and cater to a sub-culture that was being largely overlooked. Much like their association and eventual sponsorship with rap forefathers Run-DMC, adidas succeeded in truly understanding the difference between building just a company versus building a brand.

Thus, when the opportunity to come on board and help further the brand presented itself, I jumped in head-first, blindly accepting without a proper job description. Furthermore, it was my first gig in my brand new home of sunny Los Angeles. New city. New gig. New challenge.