WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.800 I was Consulting with my brother and talking about everything. 00:00:02.800 --> 00:00:04.700 He looked at me, and he was like, 00:00:04.700 --> 00:00:07.800 if we did this ourselves, a mouse when Felix, 00:00:07.800 --> 00:00:09.100 and this is how I did it. 00:00:21.500 --> 00:00:25.000 I was really scared to speak up in general and I wasn't sure. 00:00:25.000 --> 00:00:27.800 I really honestly didn't know how it was going to come off. 00:00:27.800 --> 00:00:30.400 I wasn't sure if, you know, I wouldn't be supported if people 00:00:30.400 --> 00:00:32.800 would you know, kind of be really critical of it. 00:00:32.800 --> 00:00:35.400 I was blown away by, you know, 00:00:35.400 --> 00:00:39.800 the women who were really vocal with me and who told me, 00:00:39.800 --> 00:00:41.500 you know, their own stories and in one sense, 00:00:41.500 --> 00:00:42.900 it was amazing to have that support, 00:00:42.900 --> 00:00:46.100 but it was all so heartbreaking, that so many women have their 00:00:46.100 --> 00:00:49.200 own stories and had been through something and you could relate 00:00:49.200 --> 00:00:50.300 to what I was going through. 00:00:50.300 --> 00:00:56.900 I was Consulting with my brother and talking about everything 00:00:56.900 --> 00:01:00.700 and we got to the issue that I did not have shoes to run 00:01:00.700 --> 00:01:03.400 in at the Olympics and he looked at me, 00:01:03.400 --> 00:01:07.300 and he was like, if we did this ourselves and I looked at him 00:01:07.300 --> 00:01:08.600 like he was absolutely crazy. 00:01:08.600 --> 00:01:10.000 The more I sat with it. 00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:13.100 I was so exhausted of asking for change, 00:01:13.100 --> 00:01:16.600 you know, we were searching for a sponsor of Footwear sponsor 00:01:16.600 --> 00:01:20.000 that my values align with, and I was just in a place where 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:21.300 I was tired. 00:01:21.800 --> 00:01:24.700 And I was like, well, this is a great opportunity to be that 00:01:24.700 --> 00:01:25.200 change. 00:01:27.900 --> 00:01:32.400 So the first step that we tucking in building say she was just 00:01:32.400 --> 00:01:34.400 a reaching out to someone on Instagram. 00:01:34.400 --> 00:01:38.700 Like they're Tiffany beers who respected so much, 00:01:38.700 --> 00:01:42.300 you know this phenomenal engineer and who has built, 00:01:42.300 --> 00:01:46.900 you know, iconic shoes and we just literally the end her on Instagram 00:01:46.900 --> 00:01:49.800 and like ran the idea by her was like, 00:01:49.800 --> 00:01:56.100 you know, and she just connected with me as a person going 00:01:56.100 --> 00:01:59.300 through the development process during the pandemic was pretty 00:01:59.300 --> 00:02:02.800 wild. I mean, we literally built this virtually, 00:02:02.800 --> 00:02:06.600 you know, so our team was all over and we would come together 00:02:06.600 --> 00:02:10.400 and literally we would be having meetings with the factory 00:02:10.400 --> 00:02:13.800 on Zoom. I don't really have anything to compare it to you because 00:02:13.800 --> 00:02:17.300 this is all I know and you just kind of adapting to the best 00:02:17.300 --> 00:02:17.900 that you can do. 00:02:17.900 --> 00:02:19.100 You know what everyone where they're at. 00:02:21.200 --> 00:02:23.800 Do-it-all receiver shoes. 00:02:23.800 --> 00:02:26.100 And, you know, spend that you know, 00:02:26.100 --> 00:02:28.300 what kind of time in them, you know, 00:02:28.300 --> 00:02:30.000 give all of our feedback you meet with the, 00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:32.800 you know, the different companies who are doing are are testing, 00:02:32.800 --> 00:02:33.100 you know. 00:02:35.500 --> 00:02:38.200 On a special project for my axle Spike, 00:02:38.200 --> 00:02:39.600 that I wore in the Olympics. 00:02:39.600 --> 00:02:43.500 It was kind of a different process because it was supposed 00:02:43.500 --> 00:02:45.500 peace to me and they were handmade. 00:02:45.500 --> 00:02:48.600 And so we worked with Incredible shoe. 00:02:48.600 --> 00:02:53.400 Literally a shoe Craftsman, who was based in Oregon. 00:02:53.400 --> 00:02:56.300 And so we would be zooming into his recalled. 00:02:56.300 --> 00:02:58.300 It like his his laboratory. 00:02:58.300 --> 00:03:00.100 His work is work place. 00:03:00.100 --> 00:03:02.800 I guess I'm which it looks just like an old school. 00:03:02.800 --> 00:03:04.200 Like I know it's old school. 00:03:04.200 --> 00:03:07.100 Kind of like workroom and it was really fascinating because 00:03:07.100 --> 00:03:09.800 I literally saw the shoes being cracked it. 00:03:12.500 --> 00:03:15.800 I didn't know that there was such a huge issue with women, 00:03:15.800 --> 00:03:18.900 not being involved in the process of making shoes when we decided 00:03:18.900 --> 00:03:19.800 that we were going to make shoes, 00:03:19.800 --> 00:03:24.900 but typically for women, and our research and Tiffany really 00:03:24.900 --> 00:03:27.800 explaining that the last were based on men's feed. 00:03:27.800 --> 00:03:29.800 That's when, like, it was like, Wow, 00:03:29.800 --> 00:03:32.000 as a professional Runner, the shoes that I'm wearing, 00:03:32.000 --> 00:03:34.100 another not made for women, that's crazy. 00:03:34.100 --> 00:03:36.200 So then it was very intentional that, 00:03:36.200 --> 00:03:37.900 you know, a woman with engineer. 00:03:37.900 --> 00:03:41.700 The shoe that are designer, would be a woman and also that we 00:03:41.700 --> 00:03:42.500 would celebrate them. 00:03:42.500 --> 00:03:43.900 And so on are shoe, you know, 00:03:43.900 --> 00:03:45.900 when you look on the tongue, you see Tiffany signature, 00:03:45.900 --> 00:03:48.600 you see Natalie kendrion are designer's signature. 00:03:48.600 --> 00:03:51.500 You see my signature and we really want to tell that story 00:03:51.500 --> 00:03:55.100 of who's behind these beautiful shoes that have been made. 00:03:55.100 --> 00:04:00.600 So we recently open home of sage bushes. 00:04:00.600 --> 00:04:03.400 Are it's a retail pop-up shop. 00:04:03.400 --> 00:04:06.500 In Culver City idea was that it wouldn't be a traditional 00:04:06.500 --> 00:04:10.300 transactional face, but that it would be really Community 00:04:10.300 --> 00:04:12.200 Center. And so it's a place where yes, 00:04:12.200 --> 00:04:16.300 you Coming by shoes, but we could also come and have our Sage 00:04:16.300 --> 00:04:18.700 Collective events. And so we've had workouts, 00:04:18.700 --> 00:04:21.700 their hosts the conversations, you know, talking about things 00:04:21.700 --> 00:04:25.000 that women don't typically talk about and whether it's relating 00:04:25.000 --> 00:04:26.400 to Motherhood or in the workplace. 00:04:28.900 --> 00:04:33.400 Why? I think it's shocking to know that we are so behind with 00:04:33.400 --> 00:04:35.800 our maternal issues and family leave. 00:04:35.800 --> 00:04:39.200 It was really me going through my own experiences that open 00:04:39.200 --> 00:04:40.100 my eyes to him. 00:04:40.100 --> 00:04:43.400 I think every woman where they are can we can start with their 00:04:43.400 --> 00:04:45.600 own circles, we can speak up when something isn't, 00:04:45.600 --> 00:04:49.100 right. It's really scary and sometimes there is consequences 00:04:49.100 --> 00:04:52.000 involved but I think we can start making little steps, 00:04:52.000 --> 00:04:54.500 you know, whether that's when you know your specific employer 00:04:54.500 --> 00:04:56.500 and I think there's also power in the collective. 00:04:56.500 --> 00:05:03.400 I was so proud of Samoa and the conversation that they brought 00:05:03.400 --> 00:05:05.700 to the Forefront around mental health in sports. 00:05:05.700 --> 00:05:08.800 I think it's a conversation that we should have had a long time 00:05:08.800 --> 00:05:11.700 ago. And I think often times athletes are seen as invincible 00:05:11.700 --> 00:05:15.700 and sometimes we see ourselves that way but we're human and we 00:05:15.700 --> 00:05:16.900 go through things like everyone. 00:05:19.000 --> 00:05:23.000 I started to think, you know, why do I think that this is not 00:05:23.000 --> 00:05:25.400 possible? Like why does it seem so big to me? 00:05:25.400 --> 00:05:28.500 And I think one of the answers to that question was that I didn't 00:05:28.500 --> 00:05:30.100 see it. I never saw it growing up, 00:05:30.100 --> 00:05:33.000 you know, people where me and Wes are from, 00:05:33.000 --> 00:05:35.100 they don't start companies, you know, we hadn't, 00:05:35.100 --> 00:05:37.200 we didn't have friends who, you know, 00:05:37.200 --> 00:05:39.200 whose parents had companies. 00:05:39.200 --> 00:05:42.700 And so I think more founders of color more women. 00:05:42.700 --> 00:05:46.400 Founders know, it's so important to see that in action and in 00:05:46.400 --> 00:05:51.400 real-time to have no people at the table who not only are just 00:05:51.400 --> 00:05:54.400 there but are have a voice and who our decision maker 00:05:57.200 --> 00:05:58.100 That's a great question. 00:05:58.100 --> 00:06:01.200 I mean, I think I'm really going to I'm not going to sugarcoat 00:06:01.200 --> 00:06:05.500 anything. You know, I will definitely tell her how hard it was 00:06:05.500 --> 00:06:07.400 and how disappointed I was in. 00:06:07.400 --> 00:06:08.600 Really all the feelings. 00:06:08.600 --> 00:06:11.200 I have. You know that I wasn't value in that my work wasn't 00:06:11.200 --> 00:06:13.800 seen but then that I took action, 00:06:13.800 --> 00:06:15.500 you knowing that I didn't accept that. 00:06:15.500 --> 00:06:18.100 What do you believe in something and you want to do something 00:06:18.100 --> 00:06:20.600 the right way that you stand up for yourself and that you speak 00:06:20.600 --> 00:06:21.200 the truth?