my name is eric hernandez i went to asu and graduated in 2007 with a bachelor's in science of industrial design [Music] [Applause] i've always been interested in art and uh just trying to find out trying to find a way to improve the product around us i was always a big fan of legos and building and coming up with my own ideas and trying to figure out ways to be creative and looking at ways to utilize that outside of just fine arts and as i mentioned improving the things around us was a it was something that was a difficult task to figure out um before really falling into what industrial design was before that i had looked at architecture i looked at um engineering and both of them had a path that wasn't exactly what i was looking for and it just kind of came came upon industrial design while really looking at who makes shoes i'd always love shoes skateboarding i'd gone through shoes and worn shoes out very quickly so it's just like how do i make these better who does this how do i find a way to do this and so through research and just asking questions and even going to uh what was academy of art college for a session while i was in high school it opened my eyes up to what product design was and even then it was still transportation design and getting recommendations to find something else called product or industrial design so with that i found the program and saw that asu had one and being in my home it was the easiest and best way to really find out if that's what i wanted once i was in and i was hooked okay it's awesome so then about now tell us about where you work right now and what you do at the company where you work uh i currently am a design director for basketball at adidas in the north american office i've been here for three years now i have worked on the lifestyle side as well and in originals for two years of that time and have been in footwear for 10 years now can you tell us something about tell us about something you've designed and if you could sort of walk me through walk us through your process of design yeah that'd be great yeah so this project i have in front of me is called the adidas originals sl loop runner and this was a product from our all winter 2014 line this means that i started working on this in late 2012 moving into 2013. so this was one of my first bigger projects with a devious originals and was was fairly successful i think overall it's closing in on about a million pairs uh in the united states and north america as a whole so um for for this for this business unit in north america it was a fairly successful project working on this project there was a lot of questions as to where we were in the market and what our transition was and what we needed to be as adidas originals in the us and so there was questions of what the competitor was doing what we needed to do how we would respond and react or actually make our own mark and tread our own path and so some of the visuals that you see are drastically different in terms of the aesthetics and the design language that's used compared to what we were doing in previous seasons so it was kind of a departure that was uncomfortable to a lot of people internally but it was something that we were proposing and really willing to to double down on not just on this project but with the product line at the time and so looking at this project it's a casual runner not made for performance just something lifestyle wearable on a daily basis so a lot of the restrictions and performance needs didn't need to be as heavily acknowledged and it was more just how do you make it comfortable lightweight and something easy to get on and get off that can be worn with a lot of different outfits and so some of the details that we looked at while we were designing the shoe had to do with what we call collective memory so with adidas being 50-plus years old as a company we have a lot of heritage and a lot of background and dna through sport and so even doing a lifestyle shoe we will want to always honor and respect what we've done in the past and so a lot of those things were identified and really looked at on this model so some of the models that inspired this product were the sl72 which was one of the first podium shoes ever done for the 72 olympics and so i can pass on some photos of that as well so you can have those for reference and uh there's there's cues from several other shoes but a lot of it is not necessarily taking an old shoe and making it new and modern uh come up with some of the things that you've seen in retro bring back like the new beetle and things that have come in the past but actually just taking some of those ideas and evolving them into something new so something that's come up in a lot of shoes even our current performance shoes is this idea of what we consider a decelerator so this this facet that carves in on the midsole that's really drastic and a visual actually helps improve cushioning with something like this so when you actually heel strike this allows it to compress and give a little bit more mechanical cushioning beyond what the foam allows and that's something that's been shown on performance shoes as well as casual shoes but it started way back in the 70s for us so something continuously evolved on the performance side being referenced and actually drastically pushed in a visual for the lifestyle side and then just have the occurrence is that when somebody wears this as a lifestyle shoe it actually gives you a place to kick off your shoes pretty easily where you put your other foot here and kind of allow it to kick off so you know play on both sides and have something that actually creates such a strong visual for the shoe the performance as well as function uh some of the other things in uh referencing the name the loop name actually came and was derived from the way that the stripes were created so looking at what we typically do on stitched on stripes three stripes that you see from our heritage from superstars and all our pressed models looking at how to create something that's a new visual but also helps improve what this shoe does is we looked at the stripes and instead of stitching them on we made it look as though they've been cut up and peeled off and create loops to help with the lacing but in doing so we've created these windows that are a void of the stripes that we've inserted mesh in that gives the shoe breathability so again something that may be uh a little bit less breathable but more durable throughout the rest of the shoe allows mid foot breathability it's interesting i was just gonna say what is really amazing is you know this is field to me it also looks like uh almost as if you are opening a window into history then it's unpeeling the present to show the past heritage of adidas which is another kind of a really incredibly visual yeah and so with that idea of the loops and how we continue to evolve that um obviously being being a booty construction or a sock-like construction that keeps uh typical tongue construction out so something that makes it easier to get in actually improves the fit so now we've created a sock so that when you slip it on there's no slipping there's no heel slip you can wear it very loosely laced but in doing so we also wanted to create those loop visuals to create the accessibility and really kind of double down on the idea of what the loop visual is and so when you look at the shoe as a whole there isn't a ton that says this is the sl72 or the formula one or any of those shoes that we've referenced from the past but if you start to think of it as again that collective memory it's somebody that would know the past appreciates what's coming in the new but if you're not somebody that knew the past it gives you a reason to look back at the past and understand why we took those details and what makes adidas so so strong in its heritage and so some other details that are a little bit more subtle are even just looking at this what looks like almost a tessellation on the on the tongue is something that was a molded a molded tongue one of the first times that a molded tongue was done was on the sl72 and we took that pattern and instead of doing something heavy and bulky like that original tongue is use use new technologies and new manufacturing processes to create this 3d printed uh process and use it the same way so that it gives the tongue structure but there's still flexibility and there's still that detail harkening into the past as well as just something as simple as this t-toe construction it gives you structure around the toe so it's reinforced and gives a little bit of structure here so that the toe that's pretty much deconstructed as a whole still has some structure and keeps itself up off your toes so you don't feel any pressure so uh you know something that adidas has done very well throughout its history is keep pattern simple and so when you look at this shoe there's minimal amount of patterns compared to what was happening in the 90s and even the early 2000s and while we still want to honor and not go so far as to no so pu films hot melted very plastic feeling shoes we wanted to honor that this is still a lifestyle shoe we want to make sure that somebody can appreciate the fact that there's still suedes on it but there's still nylons that there's materials like open meshes that harken back to the past but also respect the fact that this is a lifestyle product versus something that's made for competition okay so the next question is about um aesthetics uh i think you've already talked about aesthetics in some way but in general did you talk about your process uh how do you go about designing a shoe and how do you think of aesthetics but also functionality uh i mean it's amazing how just in terms of that cutout on this on the soul how you express how you explain how it functions but also has a certain interesting aesthetic appeal and can be used to take your shoe off so the combination of aesthetics and functionality so beauty and utility and then i know you've talked about zero waste and the things that adidas is doing now to to go towards that sustainable direction if you could talk about those things and your process that'd be great so this project we were working on a 12-month timeline so that goes from original brief coming from product marketing all the way to production and retail so within 12 months we have a few rounds of samples with our capabilities in the portland office we have a sample room that can run full upper pullovers and 3d prints of the the outsoles and toolint so we are pretty capable of getting something done on on our in our home office before ever sending anything out to asia so it's very convenient it's something that allows you to not have to go through multiple rounds of sketches you can actually get to physical tangible product pretty quickly and so something that adidas is pushing is this idea of being makers or creators so really being the one to go hands-on so not only sending over a shell pattern or something of a tech drawing to a pattern maker or a 3d modeler but to really go there and start looking at hand building something stitching it yourself cutting pieces out to see how those details work so a specific thing about this aesthetic is the flipped up peeled looped stripes and so something that we had to figure out was would these pass pull strength tests to make sure that you could lace through them so going through and going to the sample room and really starting to cut out that panel see what we can do to reinforce it to back it to allow the breathability that we wanted but to keep the strength and utility that's needed to have a lace go through it was a key detail so something that we did was this is a piece of synthetic suede and uh in order to make it stronger we backed it with a with a pu film so it reinforces it and also gives that secondary color so if you were to peel this stripe back over you can see that the suede is there and that it was literally just a stamped die cut piece that's been wrapped up in terms of other aesthetics for this model we did go for something a little bit more drastic than normal in this very angled uh faceted look versus what we do uh in the line and what a lot of our history shows but if you really start to dive deep down into our past and our heritage our archives show that we've had this thing this faceted angular visual before a lamborghini or some more recent architecture is shown and it's it's it's always fun to see something that was done 30 40 years ago coming back and being reinterpreted and not having to say here's the shoe again we could always do that we do that with some of our classics that'll always be around stan smith's superstars campuses they're our heritage and we'll always honor it but it doesn't mean that we can't uh honor them in a different way and elevate them to something new so the formula one shoe which i can pass images on you can reference those they're actually a great example of where a lot of this faceted angular visual comes from and so some other details of kind of making sure that design allows for utility is actually this visual at the bottom so cutting out the rubber uh and allowing the cva to show through from the midsole not only reduces weight because the rubber is a heavier material and we can get rid of some of the uva as well there's this idea of the trampolining effect that happens so when you press down and your heel hits your foot it actually allows this display a little bit more which allows kind of this compression that splays out and rebounds as you lift your foot back up so not only is it a nice uh distinct visual it gives you some function as well and again being that this is on the lifestyle side and not having a lot of the technological advances like new foams or different materials we have to find ways to use our manufacturing and our design details to really give us those improvements beyond the norm it's fantastic wow it's amazing how form and function fit well together in some of these details definitely yeah and so that's everything that we try and do you know has to be inherently functional so even though it is a lifestyle shoe as i mentioned previously this is a sock-like construction so for somebody that has a wider foot or a higher end stepper just doesn't like the compression it may be hard for somebody to get into this so again making sure that we have these pulls but also then breaking the pattern so this may be non-stretch materials and make sure you don't splay out or roll over the shoe you can see the stitch here actually continues under these eye rows and allows for a stretchable material package to be put on the tongue so that somebody with a higher instep or a wider foot can either stretch out this way or allow to stretch out this way to allow for more comfort and accessibility so keeping your foot snug and making sure that it's not overly stretchy but also making sure that you can get your foot in no matter what your foot shape is so aesthetically you your inspirations come from a variety of sources that when you you've talked about architecture you've talked about adidas heritage so products architecture um fashion as well yes of course and i think you know again being on the lifestyle side we have a lot more room to play in fashion so looking at designers that we even collaborate with like a raf simmons or ricco and some of the highest couture lines uh available and seen on paris fashion week you actually see some of our products at high end tiers that we collaborate at 600 700 price points come down and inspire some of this and so we're working linearly on those things and at the same time in tandem we want to make sure that accessibility and somebody that sees that for the first time that may think that is too far and too drastic can also say oh but this is really nice and this feels great and to the average consumer this may be pushy so we have to make sure that we have that bandwidth from something of a high in fashion all the way to the average consumer that may be going to a mall to find the shoe at 75 i know that adidas is doing some stuff with zero waste and thinking of sustainability and new technologies that will minimize waste can you talk about those efforts a little bit as well definitely as as we start pushing to advancing uh how production is done and what what other concepts there are and what possibilities there are we continue to look at new new processes and so uh something on our on our more innovative side and being looked at by our advanced teams is uh 3d printing for midsoles and that started to come out from a lot of different groups and companies but we've really pushed to make sure that that is not just 3d printing for the capability of additive process but also the innovation of tuning specifically for the consumer so if the possibility were to have 3d scanning machinery in a store in a retail uh facility to be able to scan someone's foot ask them how they run or watch them run and actually fine tune a midsole to say that they pronate or they have a step that does this we can actually help them improve the way they run and so with that it's additive there's no no molds no no shipping or delivery from china or vietnam it really simplifies the process and actually brings the the production time from months to minutes in a lot of cases the same with uppers we've been using our primeknit technology for now a few years and our advancements in that are pushing more and more to be able to knit with zero waste so if you need a pattern that is shaped like this comes around here cuts here we can say that's all we need currently of course when you purchase materials from a vendor or supplier they're going on 44 inch rolls yards and yards of material and the best you can do is look at yields and so again something that was done on this shoe at a lower price point where innovation isn't as uh possible we looked at things as simple as making sure that this pattern piece can actually uh nest into itself so making sure that when you have a piece of material that's a square or even a cowhide shape very odd patterns that we can try and place these parts in the best manner possible to make sure that our sustainable sustainability is as best as we can for something at this level something that we look at across all models is avoiding things like solvent-based glues we go to water-based for production we make sure that everything is is as eco-friendly as possible and we've successfully done so we're one of the top the top companies in terms of athletic wear when it comes to sustainability and one of the top 10 from the last report in just production in general not just athletic but in manufacturing so we pride ourselves on that and we do so not just from product but from the way we work whether it's trying to do more digitally than printing out things passing things on from factories making sure that prints 3d prints are used before opening walls a little goes a long way when you start to realize how many samples we go through how many rounds we go through it's amazing to see and unfortunately to see how much we still waste but in comparison to the next best company we still thrive to make sure that we do the best we can so it's amazing so not only are some of these new technologies helping you make more sustainable shoes but also shoes that are customized to the user's needs and you know one of the things that's talked about in sustainability is the idea that if something is designed specifically for you you will keep it longer you will use it more carefully so therefore the life of the product is also extended and that also adds another layer of sustainability so in a sense you're doing both definitely we talk about bespoke and tailoring and going back to what shoes were cobbling we use the term cobbling a lot we mock up stuff in the same way that a cobbler would we're getting back to that nitty gritty and using our hands and it's exciting you know not everyone has the time to do 50 iterations of sketches but if you can go and you can get a piece of leather or piece of textile and try and build something and get your point across that much quicker it makes the process that much easier and so you know even working with different people in bit on the business side on the development side there's only so far that a sketch and even a nice rendering or 3d model can get you but being able to tangibly show something to somebody can get signed off much quicker and so you know from that side it makes our process that much more efficient and on the other side when it comes to the consumer being able to tell that something has a handmade touch to it even in mass production you can tell and that it's been considered in a different manner that it's not just something that was built in illustrator or photoshop and then mass-produced that somebody took the consideration and think this cut or this seam makes more sense than this and that's how we move forward so in a sense it also brings the element of craft into mass production which is sort of a new trend and also something that brings more value to the product definitely definitely one of the terms that started to come out outward facing in our marketing is this idea of feature craft and so taking modern day uh processes like 3d printing and even cnc milling and finding ways to honor it through craft adi dassler the founder of adidas was a cobbler he was all about the athlete he went to each athlete and asked them what they needed and it was on his hands and knees working on the person's foot jesse owens was a big one going during the olympics to go put the shoes on jesse owens to make sure they fit well before winning four gold medals in front of hitler very very intense situation being a german company and having to do that but it shows the amount of dedication that the brand has always had to craft and so this idea of futurecraft and again looking at what cnc mills can do right now we use it to mill our molds but we've actually started to look at it if we want to use leather again something that is realistically sustainable when it's done in the right manner because it's a byproduct of meat it's it's an easy one to come across uh we looked at instead of cutting and piecing together leather what if we used one piece of leather and milled it to do what we need so if it needs to be more flexible or more more pliable in these areas how do you create a pattern that a cnc mill can do and therefore again creating a shoe out of almost one process where everything is done in one piece and all you need to do is stitch one stitch down the back to be able to create a finished product okay what a fantastic idea yeah wonderful all right so one last question uh and this is more actually not so much about your work or adidas but more um as you know this is for students who are just kind of getting to the course is called understanding design like what exactly is design so what would you recommend to someone who's like just kind of thinking of a career and is considering design wants to be a designer what would you what would you suggest or recommend to someone like that be willing to screw up i think that's the biggest thing i mean every every project i've ever worked on being a perfectionist being a designer you you're so critical of yourself and you know you can always do something better when you get into school you know that there's a deadline and that's when you need to get it done and you'll be in class and you'll see people that will not allow that to happen and won't turn something in and we'll ask for extensions and in the end everybody can continue to make things better that's why there's new iterations of shoes of technology of iphones everything has a new and improved version every year every season but that doesn't mean that you can't give your best for this and that doesn't mean that you can't fail while doing so in creating this model you start to see why i did something but then on the next version you see why i did it differently simplifying even further improving upon fit finish even costing exercises you know i'm working with business business people i'm working with development people i'm working with engineers and things that we had to compromise on here for the next season we learned and understood how to make it better so this might have cost us too much and we took a hit on our margins and we didn't make as much money as we needed to but maybe for me i succeeded because i pushed the business aside to say even though this costs more it's making it look better well then that gives me the next season to then say okay they're going to hold me to that new cost what do i need to do differently to make it look as good as i want well retaining my vision but also check the boxes that i may have pushed them beyond comfort on the next time and so failure and the knowledge that you're going to improve every time is is a big one so would you say failure almost in a sense failure is a part of success it is it's definitely that and you know you can say that that comes in quotes all the time but it's true and it's something that is very very easily uh proven uh you know whether it's michael jordan admitting that he lost just as many games as he won missed as many shots as he's as he's made it's it's part of it's part of the life process not just design but just knowing that you're going to fail beyond designing you might not even become a designer you may go through four years of design to then become a product manager or a product marketer and work with designers it doesn't mean that you know know better than them it's just that each person has their role and excels at a certain thing and becomes an expert in that part and as a designer you have to be an expert in what's desirable what's functioning what's how does form inherently follow function and vice versa you can't be stuck to this is a rule and this is a guideline you have to be flexible to to know that if i try this because it functions but it doesn't look good i may have to make it look better and the function may be affected by that but in the end you're working towards a goal to satisfy a lot of different things and not just design intent and that's a big one is the flexibility to know that in the end whether it's a consumer whether it's a retailer whether it's a it's your boss you have to satisfy somebody at one point or another and there's always a point of battling for what you believe is right and then there's a point where you have to acknowledge that there's certain things that you'll always improve on for the next time so keeping those ideas and not feeling like it's a failure that you didn't get your point across but that it means that you have another season another round another product to push that towards is always kind of that positive outlook you
2021-08-16