Grab the nails.
Grab your lasting board.
This your size?
Alright, we’ve got a lot more work to do,
Let’s get everyone else fitted.
Pull it off.
Hold it up.
[Shoe Surgeon]
-What’s going on? -What’s going on man, good morning.
-Good morning. -Alright, so this is it.
Yeah, so this is the main studio where we do everything
from design development, meetings, clients...
and make all the shoes.
Dominic is one of the most well-known creators
in today’s custom sneaker world.
With a handful of tools, machinery and unique materials,
he breaks down a shoe to its core,
putting new life into his custom creations.
He’s turned his shoemaking hobby into a full-time career,
crafting shoes for a range of clientele.
He’s opened up a school to teach new students
how to construct their own custom pairs.
Hey, talk about these ones you actually have on, man.
This is a collaboration with eBay.
They wanted to do something for the event,
and I had this idea that I’ve wanted to do
and I was able to make it come to life.
And it really created a lot of noise, too.
Field boot made out of the actual IKEA bag.
With suede.
You did a lot of stuff with them, you know?
Shoemaking really begins
with the last.
They say, “Last comes first.”
So what this is, is based off of a few things,
your foot,
the shape that they want the shoe,
-and the outsole. -OK.
The way I really like to create is,
I like to just put material up there
that I never really had a plan for,
-I just liked it. -Yeah.
And then, you know, something comes to mind,
I’m able to, like, piece things together, grab it
and then, you know, start making something.
My man.
So then, you know, you cut your pieces,
then you skive them.
So when you say, “Skive them,” what is that?
Skiving is when you make an edge flush.
So, you’ll see the edge is more flush.
Because that’ll be a top edge
and you’ll put the next layer on top of that.
Then you start gluing pieces together and sewing them.
Right.
Once you finish piecing it together,
-the liner is going to get sewn on. -OK.
And then we’re going to sew the back to the toe
and I’ll attach it.
-You know, it’s a puzzle. -Yeah.
After it gets put together like this,
then it gets pulled over the last, the form,
and then it’s starting to take shape.
-After the sole goes on, -OK.
we’ve got to take the form out.
Boom.
When The Shoe Surgeon started, I was 18, 19 years old.
I lived in Charlotte.
My brother was visiting and a friend of mine
and we drove to New York City.
First time ever in New York City, I ran into Pharrell Williams.
He was the person that inspired me the most from fashion and music.
And I was just so inspired and during that trip,
it’s like, “Man, I really need to come up with a name,”
like, you know, the alias or what the brand is,
whatever it is.
And we came up with ‘$hoe Surgeonz’
with a money sign and a ‘z’.
I had the opportunity to make
shoes for Justin Bieber, he was on tour
and, you know, they asked for
I think, 20 pairs in a week.
I was still young, I was working by myself,
I thought it was possible,
so I ended up going crazy,
and I ended up in a mental hospital.
It took a while just to feel a little bit better,
and then I was self-medicating with drugs and alcohol.
And then I ended up in the mental hospital again.
But I was like, figuring out how to overcome myself
and move past this diagnosis of bipolar,
which, to me now, doesn’t even exist.
Just live a healthier life and make better decisions,
and I think everything will be OK.
Dom’s work has been, at times, a struggle,
but the through line is, it’s his passion.
He uses that same energy to inspire and teach new students his craft.
What is, you know, one of the things that you really stress to them
in your class?
For the schools, it’s really to focus on inspiring others,
but also giving them the proper tools
to do something the right way,
you know, to focus on the quality,
focus on the process.
Are you an easy person to work for?
I'm the wrong person to ask.
Yeah, it’s practise, practise, practise.
How are they looking? Let me see.
They’re good colors, man.
We’re here in the class.
People are making Air Max 1s,
it’s a four-day class
and they get to make a shoe from start to finish.
A lot of these people who are coming in,
they don’t even have any prior knowledge of sewing,
knowing how to use machines,
so it’s pretty incredible that these people come in here from overseas.
What’s the appeal in doing something like this, for you?
Well, I think to me, mostly it’s really satisfying
to have something that you were a part of making.
-You know? -Yeah.
It’s not as much like, “It needs to stand out,”
I like that, but it’s more like that the thing is like...
is like, of me.
-Is this your first class? -First time I tried to sew a shoe.
So, I bought the machine three weeks ago.
The sneakers Dom makes are fantastic.
All right, guys, you want to gather around?
I wanted to show everyone my first pair of shoes
that I made from scratch.
You know, I’m missing some backing in the toe.
The pattern was completely off.
So, I brought these up here for everyone,
and then I want to get some guys who finished already
to pull them off the last.
What do you call these?
-L.A. Dream. -L.A. Dream!
There it is.
Alright Dom, so I just saw two people who finished their shoe
and take it off the mold and everybody gives them some love,
that’s kind of the culmination of this whole thing?
Yeah, I mean, that’s what it’s all about is coming together.
And, you know, giving an experience
and really creating something that will last a lifetime,
from the experience to like having your own shoe
and, you know, wherever they end up taking it.