interval sessions to help you bag that PB?
A shoe can make all the difference. I think runners only really have one tool that can really help or hurt your performance in running and that’s the footwear. If runners are in the right shoe it keeps them healthy and that’s the big thing. When you’re injured you can't run, you can't do what you love to do, so it’s really important to be healthy. Being in the right shoe allows that and you can continue to do what you love. But if you’re in the wrong shoe, you can get injured and that can be a huge deal.
What do you think happens first, demand or supply?
Runners. Elite athletes, but runners of all levels. I work with elite athletes a lot and I used to be a pretty serious runner myself, so that’s still really motivates me and the team to make sure we’re innovating and delivering for them. But I get really excited when people are new to the sport, who might be intimidated or unsure of themselves but find this love for running. There’s kind of this emotional thing that draws people into running and I think the product is really something that can help that. If people are really drawn to a running shoe that can really inspire them. It can make a huge difference between the mindset of 'I have to run today' or 'I get to run today' because they are excited about the product and what they are doing.
Sophie Raworth on her lessons from injury?
I competed in high school and college in the US; I was a distance runner so I did cross country 10,000m and I did the track steeplechase.
Who are the animal kingdoms top marathoners?
There are a lot of runners at Nike and in the training group we go out everyday. We go out to test the product and have a good time and we do some competitive stuff on the side. It’s not super serious;
we’re not trying to be professional runners but we like to go out there and run hard and do some relays and cross country meets together.
interval sessions to help you bag that PB
Well I have kids so I wake up really early! But a day in my job is show up a bit early as Nike is a really busy place, so I get there before too many people are there so I can get prepped. Then at 8am meetings tend to start and you really go from one to the next and then continuing to drive by the different members of the team to check all is OK and provide the team with the tools they need. Elite athletes are a regular part of our day. I know Mo Farah pretty well as he lives and trains there, so it’s fantastic to have these elite athletes who train there.
So we go down from our desks to the Nike campus, which is a great campus and has all the facilities right there; it has the whole 400m track on campus! The athletes train there so we can talk to them, give them a prototype to try and they tell us what’s working and what’s not. They are vocal in their feedback and we want that honestly. We actually have elite athletes that are interning with us, as we bring them in and make sure they are a part of the meetings and helping us make decisions. That’s a regular part of the day so that’s a typical day. But also making sure we spend time out of the office as well like talking to runners and getting a better understanding of what people need.
What do you think will happen to running shoes in the next few years?
I think it’s interesting. The trend in the marketplace for the last 3-5 years has been really very minimal, low offsets, minimal cushioning, that’s really became a very popular trend. But now we’re seeing the pendulum swing to the opposite side, so maximum cushioning and supporting, higher, taller offsets, so I think it’s going to be important for our team to make sure shoes like the Zoom Structure are really good shoes. As people are going to start to look for more cushioning, support and comfort. So that’s from our team and Zoom products. But I also think for the team on the Lunar products that’s really important as well as they are identified as Nike’s cushioned, support footwear.
Winter Arc: The viral TikTok self-help trend?
I think it’s a bit of both and again it comes back to what runners prefer. There was a time where the trend was minimal, low offset, and athletes preferred that but I think they got hurt and thought, 'OK that’s not for me, so I’m going to go back to what I prefer.' I think that’s something we are making sure we stay in tune with, what athletes prefer and what they’re asking for versus prescribing runners what we think they need. So it’s you that determines what you need, not us. We are going to make sure we offer a variety and a spectrum of product, so hopefully you can find the right shoe for you, but we are not going to tell you what that is.
Brett Holts, Nike Senior Design Director, spoke at the Nike Zoom showcase where runners defied the elements in the new Nike Running Flash Pack collection, featuring the Nike Air Zoom Structure 18 and Shield Flash Max Jacket. Available now from nike.com
