Checking In With Salehe Bembury

Summary

Podcast Summary: New Rory & Mal – “Checking In With Salehe Bembury”

Release Date: October 30, 2025
Podcast: New Rory & Mal
Guest: Salehe Bembury (Renowned footwear designer)
Hosts: Rory, Mal, and Markin Delicato

Overview

This episode features trailblazing designer Salehe Bembury, celebrated for his iconic collaborations and distinct design aesthetic in the sneaker and streetwear realms. With his own footwear brand Sponge and a new book launch, Salehe shares insights from his career journey, the evolution of sneaker culture, his creative philosophy, and personal stories, including a unique friendship with André 3000. The conversation blends humor, nostalgia, and candid takes on hype, brand ownership, and the business of design.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Transition to Independence and Brand Creation

• Salehe’s Journey ([03:36]-[04:20])

  • Began with a dream to work at a major brand and transitioned to see himself as a business after years of successful collaborations.
  • The realization that “I myself am a business. I’m not necessarily just this artist that gets brought in to throw some colors on the black and white, whatever. I am actually a business myself.” ([04:27])
  • Noted the difference in financial reward between being a collaborator vs. owning the brand: “It’d be nice to have the entire pie.” ([05:21])

• Learning From Corporate Experience

  • Worked for Versace, Cole Haan, Yeezy, and Crocs before launching his own venture.
  • Each role taught him business, design, and brand management fundamentals.

2. Salehe’s Authentic Aesthetic & the Role of Individualism

• Cultural Roots & Individualism ([06:26])

  • Growing up in New York fostered a strong sense of authenticity and self-expression.
  • Observes a shift where “individualism was a high priority... these days, that doesn’t really exist as much.”
  • Emphasizes his commitment to authenticity: “I don’t think anyone can be myself better than me.” ([06:26])

• Balance of Artistry and Commerce

  • Discusses the challenge of bringing personal taste into commercially successful products: “maintaining that balance of commercial and my taste.” ([07:27])

3. Nature’s Influence on Salehe’s Work

• Nature as Inspiration ([07:50])
  • Move to LA led to a newfound appreciation for nature, influencing both shoe function and style.
  • Designed functional pieces like shoes with whistles inspired by hikes and natural environments: “I made a shoe with a whistle on it because I was like, wow, I’m out in this environment where I need tools.” ([08:30])
  • Avoids narrative pretense—his designs reflect lived experience, not forced storytelling: “It would have been strange if I was in LA trying to tell a New York story.” ([09:07])

4. Collaborations, Creative Process & Design Evolution

• Collaboration to Brand Ownership ([10:01])

  • In collaborations (e.g., Versace), his role was to “make a shoe that was the best for Versace,” versus full creative freedom in his own brand projects.
  • Now trusted to run campaigns and oversee their artistic direction due to “history of proof of concept and success.” ([10:26])

• Details, Storytelling & Packaging ([16:41])

  • Sees every touchpoint (even packaging) as an opportunity for detail and branding, comparing the unboxing experience to Apple products: “Every piece of real estate on a product is an opportunity to execute detail or display your brand or portray excellence.” ([17:41])
  • On Sponge’s early presence: Deliberately inserted the Sponge logo into collaborative campaigns to build brand familiarity. ([27:55])

5. Changes in Sneaker Culture & Hype

• Death of Hype and Market Shifts ([11:53])

  • “I’ve been witnessing the death of hype... brands are not investing in collaborations as much... there is a huge over saturation of product.”
  • Notes the shift where now "classic Jordan ones are just sitting on the shelves,” and how community’s values have flipped compared with the exclusivity of the past.

• Community and New Wave of Creators

  • “It’s long gone are the days where Jordans would sell out... Now I’m paying resale for your shoe, or Joe Fresh Goods, or Action Bronson’s New Balance.” ([14:27])
  • Collaborators and designers are now the new tastemakers, shaping a more personal, story-driven culture.

6. Business Decisions: Scarcity vs. Accessibility

• On Product Releases ([29:43])
  • Weighs the pros and cons of tight, exclusive drops vs. larger, more accessible releases.
  • Sees the new brand (Sponge) as “about the full pie” ([27:12]): aiming for broader accessibility while retaining moments of hype.

7. Merch, Quality, and Moment vs. Longevity

• Merch Philosophy ([51:38])
  • Argues that for merch, the moment and storytelling can matter more than premium quality, which is reserved for longer-lasting brands.
  • “You’re not gonna be like, ‘let me feel that collar’” ([53:32]) — It’s about capturing an era or moment, not necessarily garment construction.
  • Heavy quality is appreciated, but, “the idea of merch is ultimately to have a high margin.” ([54:24])

8. Favorite Designers & Inspirations

• Shoutouts to Influences ([23:03])

  • Tinker Hatfield, Nathan Van Hook, Jeff Henderson, Fardeen Hazrati Zadeh, Tebow (formerly Dior)—mentions camaraderie among footwear designers.

• Representational Impact of Virgil Abloh & Pharrell ([47:09])

  • Virgil’s LV role, traveling style, and acceptance were pivotal for Black creatives: “It was really more about representation... like, wow, we can get there...”
  • Pharrell and others (Kendrick, Tyler, etc.) inspired Salehe to “lean into just being myself.” ([48:52])

9. The Tyrese Haliburton/Puma Basketball Project

• Designing for a Knicks Rival ([58:47])
  • Sentimental about working with Pacers’ Haliburton as a lifelong Knicks fan (“Enemy number one”).
  • “If it was between your team and your career, what are you choosing?” ([59:56])
  • Achieved a childhood dream seeing his shoe worn on an NBA court: “I started weeping, like, proper... This was the little kid in me finally accomplishing the thing I wanted to accomplish my entire life.” ([60:37])

10. Salehe’s Book: “I Make Shoes”

• The Book’s Creation ([62:34])

  • Highlights beautiful design by Play Lab and a cover painting by Delphin Finley.
  • Features a rare transcript with André 3000, reflecting on creativity and vulnerability.
  • “I think I’m one of the first non-rappers to get an Andre feature. We got an Andre feature in that book.” ([63:19])
  • Also includes archival family photos (with Ninja Turtles & O.J. Simpson) and an early letter from Sheck Wes.

• Observations on André 3000

  • Salehe treasures hikes and conversations with the legendary artist, who showed vulnerability even at his career peak: “[André] displayed... some of the vulnerability... because you think some of these people... are godlike creatures. But... he expressed being uncertain, even releasing a flute album.” ([65:21])

11. Global and Cultural Observations

• Retail Expansion & Cultural Fit ([67:39])
  • Although New York born, Salehe would prefer his first brick-and-mortar Sponge store to be in Japan, inspired by Japanese style’s agelessness and freedom from American fashion’s “rules.”
  • “In Japan, like, you’ll see like a 60, 70-year-old dude in full camo and some Jordans, and he’s like being taken very seriously.” ([68:04])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Self-Belief:
  “I don’t think anyone can be myself better than me.” — Salehe Bembury ([06:26])
• On Business Ownership:
  “It’d be nice to have the entire pie, you know... very grateful, but it'd be nice to…” — Salehe Bembury ([05:21])
• On Market Change:
  “I've been witnessing the death of hype… The consumer is more educated than they've ever been. So they see through the like very easily.” — Salehe Bembury ([11:53])
• On Creativity and Function:
  “I made a shoe with a whistle on it because I was like, wow... I need tools.” — Salehe Bembury ([08:30])
• On Representation:
  “It was like, wow, we can get there. We can be accepted in this space and have success... He was in the back of whatever dope car... in a hoodie with Jordans on.” — Salehe on Virgil Abloh ([47:09])
• On Friendship with André 3000:
  “[André 3000] displayed vulnerability... It was really empowering... you look at all the people that we worship, and you're like, no, they just... they cough.” — Salehe Bembury ([65:21])
• On Design Details:
  “Every piece of real estate on a product is an opportunity to execute detail or display your brand or portray excellence.” — Salehe Bembury ([17:41])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Transition to Ownership: 03:36–05:24
• Importance of Individualism: 06:20–07:27
• Nature and Design: 07:41–09:15
• Sneaker Culture, Hype & Resale: 11:01–14:27
• Packaging as Art: 16:41–17:41
• Virgil Abloh’s Influence: 46:01–48:50
• Design Process & Collaborations: 18:24–22:14
• Merch Philosophy: 51:38–54:24
• Haliburton/Puma Basketball Story: 58:47–61:59
• “I Make Shoes” Book: 62:34–64:59
• Cultural Reflections & Japan: 67:39–68:34

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Tone & Vibe

The episode is energetic, earnest, and conversational—mixing playful banter with deep dives into design, business, and culture. Salehe comes across as thoughtful and candid, sharing both practical lessons and philosophical musings, while the hosts keep the spirit light and relatable for sneakerheads and broader listeners alike.

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Takeaways for Listeners

• Understanding the journey from collaborator to business owner, including the creative and financial motivations.
• Insider perspective on how sneaker culture is shifting, with less focus on hype and more on narrative and community.
• Why authenticity, detail, and representation matter in modern design and branding.
• A rare glimpse into Salehe’s friendship with André 3000, and what it means to connect creativity and vulnerability.
• How future style and brand ownership is likely to evolve—with greater accessibility, global inspiration, and emphasis on individuality.

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For full stories, design wisdom, and more, listen to the full episode of New Rory & Mal: “Checking In With Salehe Bembury.”

Transcript

[Salehi Bimbri]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Rory]

I'm Jonathan Goldstein, and on the new season of Heavyweight. And so I pointed the gun at him and said, this isn't a joke. A man who robbed a bank when he was 14 years old and a centenarian rediscovers a love lost 80 years ago.

[Ana Ortiz]

How can 101-year-old woman fall in love again?

[Rory]

Listen to heavyweight on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Ana Ortiz]

Sa mi gente. It's Ana Ortiz.

[Rory]

And I'm Markin Delicato.

[Ana Ortiz]

You might know us as Hilda and.

[Rory]

Justin from Ugly Betty.

[Ana Ortiz]

Welcome to our new podcast, Viva Betty.

[Markin Delicato]

Yay.

[Ana Ortiz]

We're rewatching the series from start to.

[Rory]

Finish and talking to iconic guests like Betty herself, America Ferreira.

[Ana Ortiz]

There was this moment when the glasses went on and it was like, this is our Betty.

[Rory]

Listen to Viva Betty on the iHeartRadio Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

Hey, I'm Kyle McLaughlin. You might know me as that guy from Twin Peaks, Sex and the City, or just the Internet stand. I have a new podcast called what Are We Even Doing? Where I embark on a noble quest to understand the brilliant chaos of youth culture. Each week, I invite someone fascinating to join me to talk about navigating this high speed rollercoaster we call reality. Join me and my delightful guests every Thursday and let's get weird together in a good way. Listen to what are we even doing on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Ana Ortiz]

Hey, I'm Nora Jones and I love playing music with people so much that my podcast called Playing along is Back. I sit down with musicians from all musical styles to play songs together in an intimate setting. Over the past two seasons, I've had special guests like Dave Grohl, Leve, Rufus Wainwright, Mavis Staples. Really too many to name. And there's still so much more to come in this new season. Listen to Norah Jones is playing along on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The volume.

[Salehi Bimbri]

New warrior now.

[Markin Delicato]

All right, Rory. Today we are joined by a very, very special guest. New York City legend. A legend in the fashion game, legend in the shoe game. We are honored and privileged to have him here today. His new line is dropping. He has a new book out and we get to talk to him. I get to ask him of my sneaker head. Yes, this is a sneaker head. This episode is for all the sneaker heads around the world. Very special guest. Doing some amazing Things. We are joined by Salehi Bimbri.

[Rory]

Welcome.

[Markin Delicato]

What's up, fam?

[Salehi Bimbri]

How you doing? I'm doing good.

[Markin Delicato]

Listen, it's a pleasure to meet me.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yes, yes.

[Markin Delicato]

First of all, you busy? You running around? Congrats on the new drop on the new sponge. The Sponge collection. I don't know even know where to start with. I mean, we wear his sneakers so much.

[Rory]

Yeah, pretty much all I wear at this point. Yeah, yeah. Today I even had like, it was a maybe a self conscious thought. And then I felt even weirder after because I was like, I don't want to wear his sneakers when he's on. Like, is that weird? But then it's fucked up. I was like, but I support this guy so much. Why, why would you find that weird to not wear them today?

[Markin Delicato]

I'm not. Because he's coming to the studio today. I'm not wearing them. I threw them shits in the back of the closet. I was like, I'm not wearing my slaves today. But how you feeling, man?

[Salehi Bimbri]

I feel great. I am in a very significant part of my career in a chapter turning moment. I'm releasing a book, I'm releasing a. I've released a footwear company which is different from, I guess what my audience has been familiar with, which has mostly been collaborations.

[Markin Delicato]

Well, we saw this, we saw this happen in the event.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I mean, listen, like, I didn't even see the collaboration thing in the, in the stars. For me, you know, the. My dream was to ultimately work for a brand and I never really saw myself as someone that was going to put his name on people, across people's chests or on their shoes. So these opportunities have kind of been brought to me and me being a New Yorker, you know, I'm still going to capitalize on them and this is where I find myself.

[Rory]

And so yeah, when did you have that moment that it switched where, hey, I don't want to just design or be a head designer for somebody else.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I think I just got to look at the amount of success that I've brought other brands and across a landscape, you know, like, you know, not only just simply like one kind of sneaker, I've been able to tell, tell many different stories and within telling those different stories, speak to different audiences and through that have a lot of success with sales of shoes. And then that made me realize that I myself am a business. I'm not necessarily like just this artist that gets brought in to like throw some colors on, you know, the, the black and white, whatever. I am actually like a Business myself. And.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And. And then I also became, you know, I don't want to make this about money, but I, you know, was very aware of the amount of money that I was making these brands. And I was very.

[Markin Delicato]

I was about to say, have you ever seen the real numbers?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Oh, yeah, absolutely. That's a part of it. But. And. And then the percentage of what I was able to get from that. Very grateful. But it'd be nice to have the. The entire pie, you know, it'd be. It'd be nice to.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah, yeah. That's a little different.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You get the whole thing.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And then. And then this entire time, I've been learning. So I don't know if this is something I would have been ready for, like, five years ago, but now I.

[Markin Delicato]

Think that's why I said what I said about it. I think it was inevitable. I think people that have been following you and supporting your brand over the years, we kind of saw this happening. But when you say you. You were working at brands, you were learning. I mean, you've done some iconic shit with Versace.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Thank you.

[Markin Delicato]

Cole Han, even with the Yeezy brand along your journey.

[Rory]

They made Crocs cool.

[Markin Delicato]

Made Crocs cool. But again, you've always had a certain aesthetic. We know a Salehi aesthetic when we see it. Even your whole aesthetic appearance is a brand. You know what I mean? Like, you walk in a room, people know exactly who you are. Now growing up in New York, do you feel like that kind of molded you because this is a fashion capital and everything that you wear? But now it seems it's more easy to follow than it is to set trends these days.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

How important was it for you to remain who you are and always in anything you do? It's a Salehi thing.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I think that growing up and maybe you can relate to this. You guys can relate to this is. Individualism was a high priority. So the people that were in your friend group or just in the room were respected and appreciated because of the individualism that they brought to the table. And so if someone was wearing cheetah or black and red or whatever it was, that's who they were. And these days, that doesn't really exist as much. And so because that's an era that I come from, I really lean into being myself. I don't think anyone can be myself better than me. Right. And that has high authenticity in. And I think that's something that when people identify, they're really attracted to, because that also is rare in this time. That We. We find ourselves in, you know. Yeah. So, yeah, I think there's. There's a balance that needs to be maintained of, like injecting a certain. A certain amount of self into a project, but then also just considering the consumer and what they would like in being commercial. Because sometimes people p things a little too far, and then it's not digestible. So it's kind of about maintaining that balance of, like, commercial and then, I guess, my taste.

[Rory]

Yeah. And I think it's interesting. With designers that are born and raised in New York, typically the nature route isn't represented in their designs outside of just the colors that you use. Like what the shoes purpose is for a nature hike, for example.

[Markin Delicato]

It's a functional shoe.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Which. Which typically isn't the New York City designer stereotype. What started more of the nature side of things, growing up in the city.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So, I mean, yeah, born and raised in New York, spent 29 years here, moved to LA about 10 years ago, and through that developed a relationship with nature just through proximity. I mean, if you guys wanted to go for a hike here, that'd be your full Saturday. That'd be like going to. What was it called? Woodbury Commons. That's a full day. That's a full day. And so in LA, you know, like, hikes are 15 minutes away, and they're really beautiful experiences. And it's physical fitness and it's meditative, and it's just a nice way to start the day. And then through that, I started getting inspired and started not even, like, intentionally where I was, like, looking at trees. Like, give me an idea.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But it was more just like, damn, these colors are beautiful. And started noticing the function of the shoes I was wearing and how they were hurting or helping my hiking experience. I made a shoe with a whistle on it because I was like, wow. Like, I'm out in this environment where I need tools. I might need a knife to protect myself, I might need a lighter to start a fire, or I might need a whistle to alert people that I'm injured or my friends that are like, on the other side of the mountain or field or whatever. And so it really wasn't the most intentional thing. It was just like, this is what I'm doing. This is what I'm sharing on my social media. And now it just kind of like, authentically connects. I think it would have been strange if I was in Los Angeles trying to tell a New York story.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You know, but at the end of the day, I think it has to be authentic and that's why even like the, the Puma Halliburton thing that I've been doing is authentic because I grew up pooping, you know.

[Rory]

Yeah, I feel like you kind of had like the, the reverse career as far as trying to go to the quote unquote designer brand thing. Like earlier, how I was even introduced to you was through the Versace stuff. I would have never guessed at that point of those Versace designs that everything you would do after would look the way it looked like now I get it, because through Crocs, through New Balance, through everything that you've done, I understand your aesthetic. Versace would have been the last fucking brand I would have thought that maybe you would have worked with. And it was the one that introduced me to your designs.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Which is kind of weird because usually that process is switched. You'll do maybe the lesser brands and then go right to designer if you want to. I would never guess you would even want to do high, high end designer stuff.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Well, for one, that's when I was like a 9 to 5 employee. So that was about making a shoe. That was the best thing for Versace. It had nothing to do with, like, me being involved. Maybe looking in retrospect, maybe you could see a little of the. The style or the. But like, for the most part, that was a Versace shoe. But now when the collaborative shoes have my name on it, now I'm able to like, really do my dance and kind of do what I want.

[Markin Delicato]

You have full creative control.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, but it's. But at the same time, there, there is like, I couldn't just come in here and be like, all right, listen, Flip Flops, Timberlands. Let's see how we can merge these ideas. You know what I'm saying? Like, like, you know, it needs to make, like, commercial sense. But I think I've had enough of a history of proof of concept and success that now there's trust. So now they're willing to give me budgets to do the campaigns and no one shows up and I can just get it done. And they're just expecting assets. And so I think with proof of concept in any field, there's more trust and people just expect you to perform.

[Markin Delicato]

I've noticed over the years, though, like, the sneaker game has changed a lot from retail to just fashion and style. But one thing that kind of like blew me away last week I was talking to my boy and he. Last year he sold his Jordan 1 shattered backboards. He sold them to somebody, used. He wore them a couple times, sold them for 500. He just bought them again this year. Last week, they're sitting on the shelves for $130. How does that shift in a year where you can sell this same exact shoe, like resale.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

For 500 and then 12 months later it's sitting on the shelves. One of the most iconic Jordan ones ever is just sitting on the shelves. Like how, how does the market fluctuate that, that like drastically in such a short time?

[Salehi Bimbri]

So I'll give you two things. So one, and that's why I believe, you know, starting a brand right now is, is the most appropriate time. I've been witnessing the death of hype. I don't think it's dead. I don't want it to die. I would love to see. Yeah, I would love to see it be revived. However, I'm witnessing the death of it. It doesn't seem like brands are investing in collaborations as much. They're not telling stories and the consumer is more educated than they've ever been. So they see through the like very easily. That combined with like maybe a pending or existing recession and people are not spending money and there is a huge over saturation of product and things. And gone are the times where you would like, kind of wait for a release to happen. They're happening every day. And so now I don't know if people are as invested. And that's why I think the whole brand thing makes sense. Because it's not about just like, you know, pulling out this like, shiny rabbit out of my hat and being like, buy this thing and it'll be gone tomorrow. Yeah. It's more about like long term investment in community building and, and telling stories.

[Rory]

Did, did that shift happen? And of course we don't need to talk about Kanye's politics, but once Kanye went to Adidas after the Nike thing where, you know, it was very tough to get the Red Octobers and his goal was to make sure you could afford Yeezys and they were readily available at all times. Like it was a mass deal. Did that shift happen there? Because now you have what would be, quote unquote, the hypebeast collab. Once Kanye was with Nike and then you could just walk into any Foot Locker and get some, some Yeezys for a reasonable price. Once he went over to Adidas, like, yeah, the hype wasn't there. I thought it was a good thing. I thought they were quality shoes and affordable.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And I hate when you can't just go get some shit that you want.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But. No, but so that's an interest. And it's funny that you say that. So. And this isn't my take, there's this dude, Jacques Slade. I've repeated this on, like, every. For every conversation I've had, but he pretty much was talking about how the white Jordan Cement 4 has been sitting on shelves and outlets, and people are really upset about that. But that really shows you how backwards the sneaker community is now, where, like, if there is an iconic shoe and it's accessible, we're angry because we're used to. We need to be, like, waiting in line in the rain and being whipped or something or spending an obscene amount of money on resale for you to feel like you, like, own it. Yeah. And so you're part of the cool crowd. Exactly. And so that's kind of how backwards things are right now, you know?

[Rory]

Yeah. That's almost like I feel like in the hip hop world, when fans feel like they got to an artist early and then the artist becomes popular and they're mad, it's like, you don't.

[Markin Delicato]

You don't want to show. I'm not going to the show.

[Rory]

You don't want your favorite artists to be popular.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah, but it is a different time, though, Saleh. Like, I mean, I can get a classic Jordan shoe easier than I can get your shoe or easier than I can get Joe Fresh Goods or, you know what I'm saying? And it's like, that is just crazy to me. Like, it's long gone are the days where, you know, Jordans would sell out. And it's like, I gotta go pay resale now. I'm paying resale for your shoe or Joe Fresh Goods or Action Bronson's New Balance. Like, it's insane the way it has flipped to, you know, it's not just an iconic athlete that's selling sneakers anymore. It's like creators and influencers who have a lot of style and have been in the sneaker industry, shoe industry for so long, who are now doing their own thing. Like, those are the products that I think we want and believe in more because we kind of feel like we saw Salehi's story, we saw him his grind, we saw his ascension, and now he's here creating this thing where it's like, okay, I need to be a part of this. Because his work speaks for itself. His brand throughout the years has told the story, and it's a part of the story. If I don't have that, that's like a chapter that I'm missing out on. Saleh story a Little. Is that something that you've done intentionally to create this timeline and the storyline?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Has it been intentional? No, I think it's. I've just been kind of, like, nimble and, like. And kind of flex. Like, flexible. Yeah, I would say, yeah, just flexible with the opportunities that I've been given. And I think that now that a lot of the work has had my name on it, there's been this red thread that exists simply because I can, like, make it how I want to make it. And so I'm also somewhat of a selfish designer because up until this point, pre brand, a lot of these collaborations were just things I wanted to wear. I was like, what is. What's going to be dope? What's going to be dope for this opportunity or this brand? You know? And so with, like, a Croc, I thought to myself, man, like, I respect the brand of Crocs. They've existed for decades. But I've never really worn Crocs like that. Like, maybe had one or two in the closet. They've never really left the house. How could I challenge myself to create a croc that looks cool and that people want to wear and that potentially can like, even exist within, like, this sneaker space. Right. So there are even, like, a lot of decisions with that shoe. Or, like, I was like, you know, they. They put a lot of their Crocs in, like, bags. So when you buy a croc, it comes in, like, a bag.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I was like, no, we need to have, like, a box, because this. I was even asking you about your sneakers. The sneaker snap. The sneaker stacking ritual is a really important ritual within sneakers.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So immediately, if we're making this thing that we want to the sneaker crowd to respect, and they can't even stack their boxes.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. We're already behind.

[Markin Delicato]

Like, even your boxes are art. It's a piece now.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Thank you.

[Markin Delicato]

Like, when you get them, it's like, I know by stacking them, obviously, you know, sneakers, we. You stack our boxes, there's always the label out, so we know exactly which one it is. With yours, I can just look at the color of the box or the.

[Rory]

Extra whatever you put on top of it.

[Markin Delicato]

I know exactly what it is. So to me, that's just a certain attention to detail. I think that, you know, guys like, you guys like Joe Fresh Goods, Action Bronson, like, y' all pay attention to those certain things. How really is the. The thing of.

[Salehi Bimbri]

We're gonna reply to that real quick.

[Markin Delicato]

Oh, yeah, please.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So I. So if you think about when you get an iPhone and you peel off that piece of plastic.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And how smooth it comes up. Right?

[Markin Delicato]

Yes.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Every opera, every. Every piece of real estate on a product is an opportunity to execute detail or display your brand or portray excellence. So I really. I believe in that. And so whether it's the packaging or any of that stuff, I think that lets people know that it's the brand. And so if you think about that Apple example, like, if you got an iPhone, then you peel the plastic off, and it was like, you'd be like.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah, they just threw this together.

[Salehi Bimbri]

They just do. This isn't an iPhone with Apple. It's like, excellent. So, yeah, with all the things I create, I try to be, like, intentional about, you know, how it's done.

[Markin Delicato]

How many silhouettes have you, you know, through the companies you work for? Like, the silhouettes that are sitting there where you're like, okay, let me take these and put the Salehi spin on it. Because a lot of the Yeezys that.

[Rory]

We'Ve seen, he's posted silhouettes that aren't coming out that have pissed me off. You could have kept that to yourself. You didn't need to put it on Instagram.

[Markin Delicato]

But, like, I can imagine these brands like Puma and Adidas with Yeezy, they just have this warehouse full of silhouettes that they can't move, like, quote unquote. The dad sneaker, I think the wave runner is his dad sneaker that Kanye just got his hands on and put some beautiful palettes to it and just kind of like, how. How often does that happen when you. When a brand reaches out to you and says, hey, we want to. We want to partner with you. We want to bring you in. Like, how often do you just go into the warehouse and just see the silhouettes and like, okay, I want these four, and let me do my thing with these.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So it kind of depends on the amount of time that you have. Right. Because to actually make a shoe, both design it and then develop it. Like, when I say develop it, I mean, like, factory samples, that whole exchange, that can take up to a year. So, like, even the Halliburton shoe, for example, like, that took like, a year. But then these runners that I recently came out with, Puma, that is an existing shoe that I've kind of Mr. Potato headed some, like, new details on to make it feel fresh.

[Markin Delicato]

Okay.

[Salehi Bimbri]

The way that I. I differ as a collaborator is I'm a classically trained designer. I went to school for this shit. I can take a white Piece of paper and create something and make it into a real shoe.

[Markin Delicato]

Classically trained designer.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. I don't know if that's my term. I've been saying that it feels. That sounds fine.

[Rory]

Like the Juilliard version of design. I went. Really went to school.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. I went to school for this. So I make things, you know, your. I know my. And I think there's a difference with collaborations where they might take a shoe and just add color to it, and then what I do, which is design something from the ground up, and I'm not devaluing that at all, because some of the best collaborations of our time are color up. So I want to make that very clear. Yeah, but there's a difference. And so, you know, getting the opportunity with a brand to, like, go into their archive and take a shoe and then give it color, that's a cool opportunity. But I am definitely way more attracted to making something new.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You know, and then what's cool is, like, there's a Steve Jobs quote that says, the audience or the consumer doesn't know what they want until you show it to them. And so I think, you know, the Croc is a perfect example of that, because if you were to ask people, like, a lot of the people, you know, the amount of messages that I got that said, like, this made me wear Crocs for the first time. Like, if you'd asked those people a year ago, like, hey, like, you're gonna be wearing Crocs to, like, the club.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You're crazy. Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But that's just an example of them not knowing what they want, you know.

[Rory]

Or making a sensible shoe. Cool.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yes.

[Rory]

Because Crocs were always. They were always comfortable, but, like, it was just. It was. The moms started it.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Rory]

So it just kind of turned into that type of image of, like, I can't just be walking outside in Crocs. I'm gonna get smoke.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah. No salads. Croc is the first Croc I ever wore, like, to the airport. That's, like, a great airport.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, bro. Good travel shoe.

[Markin Delicato]

Good travel shoe.

[Rory]

I just recently bought. I don't know if we'd call it the forest print one that you just. I bought that resale.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Three camo. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

I went right to the resale to get that.

[Markin Delicato]

Now, how often do you. Do you play with, like, textures? Because I've noticed on a lot of your sneakers, the textures get a little different depending on what it is, especially the ones with the whistle on it. Like, that whole shoe just felt like A whole thing that you was like, I want this here. I want this here. How often do you jump into projects like that where you're like, I want to think of the craziest shit.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

And just execute it.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So that year one, that was. That was called the Year at the Whistle one.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So that was New Balance. I had done two shoes prior which were Color Ups. That's why I'm not hating on color Ups. I've had. I've had a mini collaborations with Color Ups. And then they wanted me to design something from scratch. They wanted the. I guess the foundation of the shoe had to be the 574. You guys familiar with it was the 5. 7 4. I'm not the crazy about the craziest about the 574. So I put a lot of details on that to try to make it feel different. So it's kind of a Mr. Mr. Potato Head execution.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And then, yeah, I was hiking a lot, and there's coyote, like, there. You could be hiking and see a coyote or you could be hiking and see a mountain lion. I've never seen a mountain lion, but you need tools. I hike with like. Like some weapons. Yeah. You know, because if you. You don't want to be caught without it.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah, yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

When a lion rolls up.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah. I like. I like the whistle. But I was like, yo, sale from New York, like, where can I stash the, you know, make. Make the. Make the joint where I could put. Put the. Put the ak. I could put the. The box cut in my.

[Rory]

Bro, how dirty New York City is. I might just. I might just get beat up.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I don't know if I'm putting my mouth.

[Markin Delicato]

I'm not whistling. Like, I'm not. We not doing that. But just let me la.

[Rory]

That's a little different. I can handle it.

[Markin Delicato]

Put a little pocket where you put the blade in right there. Yeah, absolutely. So who's some of the greatest sneaker designers that you've had an opportunity to sit with and kind of just like, soak up some knowledge and some gifts?

[Salehi Bimbri]

I love that. I've never been asked that question. This is an opportunity to just shout out some OGs.

[Markin Delicato]

So is Tinker an asshole?

[Salehi Bimbri]

I've only met. I've only met him on some, like, shake his hand, maybe take a photo. Actually, no, I've never taken a photo with him, but just shake his hand. So I would. I don't know. I have no idea.

[Markin Delicato]

That's just. That's my favorite.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, no, he's. No, he's oh. Cause you're saying, I just want to.

[Markin Delicato]

Know he's an asshole.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Oh, no, I think he's a good guy. There's a Netflix doc called Abstract, so I watched that. He looked good. He looked like a good.

[Markin Delicato]

Like a cool guy.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. So Nathan Van Hook, he is a designer that was at Nike for a bunch of years. He designed the Yeezy, too. He was head of ACG for a very long time. He has banger after banger. And then he went to Montclair, and when I did my Montclair collaboration, got to work with him there, which was cool. Just kind of like working with an idol.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Now he is currently at Adidas doing, like, Adidas basketball. Another Jeff Henderson. Yeah. Yeah. So I brought him up, and probably every interview I've done, he was at Nike for, like, 20 years. We met at Cole Han. I worked under him there, and then he helped me actually get the Yeezy gig because he was doing some design work with him.

[Markin Delicato]

Is that the one you got when you DM somebody on LinkedIn?

[Salehi Bimbri]

That was for Versace. I can tell that story as well. Okay, and then who else is a good. A good designer? Oh, yeah. Fardeen has Rati Zadeh. He was my assistant designer at Versace.

[Markin Delicato]

Okay.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So when I get into that Versace show, I explain that, but it was just me and him, and we were just doing a gang of shoes together. And now he works at Amiri, and he's killing. Killing things like doing shoes and accessories. And it's just cool to, like, see, like, have someone work under you and then see them grow and see where they go, see them blossom. Shoes. Shoes. Who else? Tebow is. He used to be the Dior footwear designer. So he designed, like, the Beach. This was around the time of, like, the triple S and around the period of time, and he is now. He now does footwear and sneakers for lv, as well as a pretty cool Birkenstock collab that he just did. There's a pretty small community of footwear designers, and we seem to all know each other because it's, like, a very specific craft. So, yeah, shout out all those people.

[Markin Delicato]

So now, where's the brand now?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Okay, so when I first left Versace and I was gonna kind of, like, be out on my own, the first thing that I knew was just to make a T shirt company. I grew up in Tribeca, Low east side. Kid grew up on all these a life and all these stores.

[Markin Delicato]

You know how to make it in America.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Boom. Exactly that. Like that. When that show was on. I was literally living that exact life. So I was like, that was one of the most legendary shows of all time.

[Markin Delicato]

Absolutely.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Shout out Brian. I don't know the other guy's name. And bring me back. Bring me back to how to make an America. Took me somewhere.

[Markin Delicato]

Sponge.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Sponge. Thank you. You started.

[Rory]

Remember this?

[Markin Delicato]

The lady started going back there. Like, I. I was selling Nick Nicks and Doms, right?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, yeah. So I started making T shirts. Yeah, yeah. Making hoodies, making sweatpants and stuff. And it really existed as, like, a streetwear brand so that, you know, things were selling out, but I was. I wasn't really, like, wearing the stuff too much. It was just more an umbrella for me to kind of do whatever I wanted because I'd existed in this space for so long where we were following trends and trying to hit different consumers. And I was like, you know what? Let me just make some pattern sweatpants just because I want to. Right. So it was more so freedom. Now, what this is, is I am making a real proper brand with. With ownership and partners and all the resources that I would need to compete with the footwear giants that exist in our space and have existed. Okay. For the last, like, 30, 40 years. And so, yeah, this is the result. It will not exist in hype that much. It'll be more about serving as many people that want to be involved in the operation as possible, and it'll be about bringing in community, because a lot of my work is in the past, at least, like, six years, has been about exclusion and hype. And you can't get this. And that's literally how we started this. Like, I can't get the shoes. The idea is, at a certain point, anyone that wants sponge footwear will be able to get it. There will be some certain moments of hype, because that's where I come from.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But this is about the full pie.

[Rory]

Was that the plan with the Sponge brand? Because even, like, years ago, when you were doing the Croc stuff and even other collabs, you would send the friends and family through the Sponge website, which wasn't always the Sponge brand.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Like, yeah, so that was kind of like a little corporate finessing I did. So every. Every New Balance and Crocs campaign, I believe, featured sponge socks.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And what. And what I was doing with that was kind of hijacking all of those campaigns on a very sub. Like, on a. On a lower level. Like, not a lower level, but kind of like in a secret way, if.

[Markin Delicato]

You will, as intentional level.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, intentional, but, like, Low as a way to just publicize the logo.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Because the, the most, the valuable thing about a logo is the amount of times you've seen it because then it becomes more and more like recognizable, iconic, whatever. So I'm thinking to myself, if I have some far off plan of starting a brand, why not just like inject injected into these campaigns? And I wasn't really thinking like hijack. That's more like our like.

[Markin Delicato]

No, it was tastefully.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, it was like it wasn't like it was in your face.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And then also the models needed clothes to wear, so all. Often the clothes were all sponge.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so this was like kind of like. And a lot of these campaigns like had massive budgets. So I was like, it was kind of a hijacking in a sense, you know, a respectful one, I think.

[Rory]

Yeah, no, I was a perfect way to go about it because that's how I even got familiar to it. And then when the website, I didn't fully know, I just knew that that that was part of your brand. Sponge some somehow has to do with you. So that made more sense with launching the sponge shoes to be like, okay, this was the next step in the entire process.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. I mean it existed as an Instagram with no photos for like years. And my, my platform for where I sold my, my collaborations was called Be a Sponge. So then that was also kind of a way to publicize what I. I don't know exactly. I was sure I was ready to do yet. But on maybe opportunity on the horizon. And then now this moment is really more about like a transition. So collaborations will continue, but I really want to explore full brand ownership and get to create freely and not necessarily collaboratively. Because when you create collaboratively, there are obstacles. Things don't always go your way when you have two different parties trying to reach a common destination. Different parties want different things.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so now with this brand, it's just going to be, it's going to be mine. And I'm excited.

[Markin Delicato]

Would you rather sell. Would you rather make 100 shoes and sell 100 shoes or make a thousand and sell 650?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Make 100 shoes and sell 100 shoes.

[Markin Delicato]

Or Make a thousand and sell 650?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Well, I don't get what you're asking me. That's a lot of numbers.

[Markin Delicato]

Because would you rather keep it. No, I'm just saying because would you rather keep it, like very small, a very small release or a wider release, but you don't sell all the way through, like the shoe doesn't sell Out.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Oh, I think it depends what part of the business that you're in. You know, if you're introducing a brand, it might be a little bit different because that going back to the whole demand thing, it's like, if a shoe releases right now and they make enough for everybody, and maybe someone in your life that you don't deem to be cool has them, you're taking them off immediately. Right. But then if a shoe releases and you can't get it at all and it's too rare, you're also upset.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

Because then I see a kid walking down Kenmare that has them on, and I'm like, he's not even doing those. Right. He wearing some.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Like, how the.

[Markin Delicato]

He got. I can't even get those.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

So he stood online, he got him.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

And it's like, now I'm mad because I'm like, they only made a hundred of those. Like.

[Rory]

Yeah, but that was even, like, when you were a kid and the richer kid at your school got the new Jordans, but he laced them too tight, wore them with corduroys. Like, he didn't even. Like, you don't even deserve those type of sneakers.

[Salehi Bimbri]

That's just.

[Rory]

That's sneaker culture. That's kind of like what comes.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Like.

[Rory]

All right, so words, the definition of words change as time goes. In 2025, would you consider yourself a sneakerhead? Everyone was hypebeast, and then you figured out your tribe and it went to sneakerheads at that point.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But even with hypebeast, though, hypebeast used to be. Or is. But used to be, like, one of the only websites that documented this culture. So it was the website, and then I think, again, the media was like, what do we call these people?

[Rory]

And it, like, hypebeast shouldn't have ended up. Up being somewhat of an insult to somebody like, yo, you a hype beast. Which is up.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Because you're right. Hypebeast was the only one that was. It was during, like, the blog era of music.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Like that first early time of, I think even tastemakers culture was off. Hypebeast. Then the world found out about it, and you got a bunch of dweebs that are in the same line as you.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And then it's like, yo, you a hype beast. Get away from me.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, but it's almost a perspective thing because they're some people that are happy to be called hipster, and there's some people that would hate to be called hipster.

[Rory]

Yeah, I. I Never minded it until again, words take new definitions as time goes. Because in the beginning. Yeah, like, hipster would have never offended me. It's fine with me.

[Markin Delicato]

Cool.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Now I know you're saying something else.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, yeah. It's true.

[Rory]

So, yeah. I think sneakerhead now has gotten that. That. That insult to some degree, too. Like.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah. Because when people act like, oh, you want to.

[Rory]

You in a 10 outside supreme store right now. Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

Think I'm a sneaker head.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Well, I honestly think.

[Rory]

I don't think you are either.

[Markin Delicato]

I don't chase, like, I don't chase the sneakers.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You. You appreciate that.

[Markin Delicato]

I appreciate it. If I like it, I get it. But, like, I think a sneaker head is a kid that you see at every release. He's chasing every drop. There's nothing wrong with that. Nothing wrong with it.

[Salehi Bimbri]

That might be a reseller, though.

[Markin Delicato]

But I think. Though, I think now that's it. That I'm glad you said that because I think it's one in the same.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Oh, no, I think there's a difference.

[Markin Delicato]

I think sneakerheads. I think a lot of sneaker heads are now resellers.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I just had a. I just came from a signing at Kith, and there are some kids there. They were, like, really happy to meet me. Want to take a photo? Ask me a question? There's a few kids there that just get it signed and walk away.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You could tell the difference. Yeah. Yeah. And there are resellers.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And they're. And they're gone.

[Markin Delicato]

And they're gone.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

But, I mean, I'm not the resale game. How do you feel about that? Like, how do you feel seeing your sneakers sold for double, which you sold them on your website. Like, is it like, you don't care once they buy it what they do with it? It's not your business. Or do you still kind of feel like. I wish they weren't doing that.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I think everyone has a hustle. I think I came from this. I. I used to camp supreme was. What is it? Well, there's a new supreme, but the old supreme, that was maybe 10 blocks from here. I used to camp out there as a high schooler, buy a $200 pair of shoes and sell them the same day for $2,000. And so, like, I can't hate on anyone getting that kind of hustle in. You know what I mean? And those are great experiences. I remember just like, camping out, going to the bathroom in bodegas.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Watching Family Guy. My portable DVD player. Yeah, those. Those were Good times. You know what I mean?

[Markin Delicato]

Well, back when they were selling the supreme teas on. On the table. Yeah, the folding table.

[Rory]

They got me for 256 on his crocs last week.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Okay, so, dude, you guys, can you just hit me?

[Rory]

I don't like to bother you.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Well, now. Now you can.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah, I'm that guy, bro. You know, hit me like, yo, the sale. I'm like, I just be biting my l. I'm like, these joints are so far, but I'm not hitting sale because I'm just not that I don't. I don't like doing it. If I can get them, I'll get them in the beginning.

[Salehi Bimbri]

No, this is a perfect transition for my Versace story because it's about asking. You guys ready?

[Markin Delicato]

Okay, I'm ready.

[Rory]

New warrior Now, Ma, I know you're thinking about upgrading to an all new iPhone 17 Pro designed to be the best and most powerful iPhone ever.

[Markin Delicato]

Hear my thoughts again?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Listen, man, Weeks you've been thinking about this, but are you also thinking about the traffic on the way there?

[Markin Delicato]

I think about that all the time.

[Rory]

Yes, you in traffic has always been a thing.

[Markin Delicato]

Oh my God.

[Rory]

That's one of your best lives.

[Markin Delicato]

Absolutely.

[Rory]

Well, good news mall when you order a new phone online with Boost mobile to send an expert right to our office, they'll set up your whole iPhone 17 with Boost Mobile within minutes. No hassle whatsoever.

[Markin Delicato]

Visit boostmobile.com to get started. Delivery available for select devices [e-mail] terms apply. Today's show is brought to you by our new presenting sponsor, Hard Rock Bet. When you think of Hard Rock, you're probably thinking of music or world class hotels and casinos. But the Hard Rock Bet app is sports betting and it hits a little different than the other sportsbook apps. It's simple, clean, and it's packed with new promos every day. Starting with your first bet, new customers can place five dollar bet and if it hits, you get not only your winners, but also $150 in extra bonus bets. NBA season is back and every night is a shot to score a major bucket on Hard Rock Bet, your home for hoops action all season long. Need a little help with your first bet bet? Check out the streaks heating up inside the Hard Rock Bet stats hub. There's new promos every day. So no matter what day you listen to this, just open the Hard Rock Bet app. Payable and bonus bets. Not a cash offer. Offered by the Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida. Offered by Seminole hard Rock Digital LLC in all other states must be 21 plus and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia. To play terms and conditions apply. Concerned about gambling in Florida, call 1-833-play- wise in Indiana. If you or someone you know has a problem gambling and wants help, call 1-800-9 with it gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I've never done a live recording before podcast.

[Rory]

I've just never done it this week. On the Bright side, Chrissy Teigen like you've never heard of before.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I think I showed the messiness of life, like, even before kids. So, like it was kind of a.

[Rory]

Natural thing just to show every part of it. After kids too, from viral moments to real life motherhood, Chrissy opens up about what it means to live life out loud, even when it's hard. When Miles was diagnosed with type 1.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Diabetes, I remember feeling like, okay, I.

[Rory]

Want to get this right for everybody that's depending on us. Chrissy talks about turning fear into advocacy, building community, and finding joy in a very full house.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I had four kids for a reason.

[Rory]

I loved the chaos of it. This live conversation is raw, funny and full of heart. Don't miss it. Listen to the Bright side on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Markin Delicato]

Hey there.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

I'm Kyle McLaughlin. You might know me as that guy from Twin Peaks, Sex and the City, or just the Internet's dad. I have a new podcast called what Are We Even Doing? Where I embark on a noble quest to understand the brilliant chaos of youth culture.

[Markin Delicato]

Daddy's looking Good.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

Each week I invite someone fascinating to join me. Actors, musicians, creatives, highly evolved digital life forms. And we talk about what they love.

[Rory]

Sometimes I'll drizzle a little honey in there too if I'm feeling sexy in the morning.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

What keeps them going?

[Rory]

And you're maybe my biggest competition on social media. Like when a kid says out of.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

Me and how they're navigating this high speed roller coaster we call reality.

[Rory]

In Australia, you're looking out for snakes.

[Markin Delicato]

Spiders and boys, right? Hey, he's no Trey McDougal.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Chill.

[Ana Ortiz]

This is like the comments section of my Instagram.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

Join me and my delightful guests every Thursday and let's get weird together in a good way. Listen to what are we even doing on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Ana Ortiz]

Hey, I'm Nora Jones and I love playing music with people so much that my podcast called Playing along is back. I sit down with musicians from all musical styles to play songs together in an intimate setting. Every episode's a little bit different, but it all involves music and conversation with some of my favorite musicians. Over the past two seasons, I've had special guests like Dave Grohl, Leve, Rufus Wainwright, Remy Wolf, Marc Rebier, Mavis Staples. Really too many to name. And there's still so much more to come in this new season, including the powerful psychedelic duo Black Pumas, my old pal and longtime songwriting friend Jesse Harris, and the legendary Lucinda Williams. Listen to Nora Jones is playing along on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Rory]

I'm Jonathan Goldstein. And on the new season of Heavyweight, I help a centenarian mend a broken heart.

[Ana Ortiz]

How can a 101-year-old woman fall in love again?

[Rory]

And I help a man atonement for an armed robbery he committed at 14 years old. And so I pointed the gun at him and said, this isn't a joke. And he got down. And I remember feeling kind of a surge of like, okay, this is power. Plus, my old friend Gregor and his brother tried to solve my problems through hypnotism. We could give you a whole brand.

[Salehi Bimbri]

New thing where you're, like, super charming.

[Markin Delicato]

All the time, being more able to.

[Rory]

Look people in the eye, not always hide behind a microphone. Listen to heavyweight on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's Ana Ortiz, and I'm Mark and Delicato.

[Ana Ortiz]

You might know us as Hilda and.

[Rory]

Justin from Ugly Betty.

[Ana Ortiz]

We played mother and son on the show, but in real life, we're best friends.

[Rory]

And I'm all grown up now.

[Ana Ortiz]

Welcome to our new podcast, Viva Betty.

[Rory]

Yay.

[Ana Ortiz]

Can you believe it has been almost 20 years? That's not even possible. Well, you're the only one that looks that much different. I look exactly the same. We're rewatching the series from start to finish and getting into all the fashions, the drama, and the behind the scenes moments that you've never heard before.

[Rory]

You're gonna hear from guests like America Ferreira, Vanessa Williams, Michael Urie, Becky Newton, Tony Plana, and so many more icons.

[Ana Ortiz]

Each and every one, all of a sudden, like, someone, like, comes running up to me and it's Salma Hayek. And she's like, you are my Ugly Betty. And I was like, what is she even talking about? Listen to Viva Betty. As part of the My Cultura podcast network, available on the iHeartRadio app Apple.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. Okay, so I moved to LA to design for Kanye. Different conversation. That job exists for about 14 months. It ends. And now I'm looking up and I'm like, oh, I'm in Los Angeles because I'm a New Yorker. I moved out there for that job.

[Markin Delicato]

I never knew that.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But yeah. So native New Yorker moved out there for that job. Been out there for like 10 years now. And so I look up and I'm like, oh, I'm in Los Angeles. I got to figure it out. I start freelancing for different brands. Brand. No, like good brands, but just brands like make a paycheck. I get to the end of that year, I have two months rent left. I don't really know what I'm gonna do. I'm shooting my shot everywhere on LinkedIn and Craigslist and just. Everywhere. Right. Just hoping anyone replies. So it's not even about getting like a flashy job. It's just about getting a job, getting a paycheck. And then I see a Versace design director and I hit him up and I propose an opportunity. I'm like, the sneaker industry is a multi billion dollar business. When we were growing up, it was about Nike, Reebok, Adidas, Puma, New Balance. And now when I said this, it was five years ago. Now, five years ago, because of Raph, Raph, Adidas, Nike, Nike comic or someone, Balenciaga starts making cool. Now this multi billion dollar consumer is aware of the fact that fashion houses can make sneakers.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So I was like, it's an opportunity for you guys. What'd you say?

[Markin Delicato]

Y3 Exactly.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Y3 as well.

[Rory]

I felt like Dior was putting out of all the those types of time.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. It was like this perfect storm of brands. Like, like a light bulb moment of like. Like, wait, we can make shoes too. So this is me just fishing bite.

[Rory]

From a lot of other shoes.

[Markin Delicato]

But that.

[Salehi Bimbri]

That's another con. Another. Yeah, another. But I saw.

[Rory]

I saw the question threes in. In Nostroms and Davis Margiel. I was like, yo, what the wait?

[Salehi Bimbri]

Table that. Because I. I got a. I got a perspective on that. So wait, where am I? Where am I?

[Markin Delicato]

LinkedIn.

[Rory]

You were talking with somebody.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so I proposed that opportunity, just shooting my shot. I'm like, the image of unemployment in my underwear, eating cereal, like, on my couch and shit. And three days later, Donatello replied to me. Donatella Versace. And I wasn't that familiar with who she was because I didn't go to school. For fashion. But I just knew that there was like this important blonde lady and Black.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

That wore black in high fashion. Right. So I was like, I know this is someone. Right. And so I. She said, she reaches out and she says she wants me to come to Milan and tell her more. And I'm gonna just go out there with a few pages of like, trend of like, probably just screenshots from Hypebeast of like, check. You guys ever heard of camo? You know, like, well, that's where my taste was.

[Markin Delicato]

Jordan, Florida really turned the fashion world on its ear.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so. But then the week leading up, it was strange because, like, someone was like, you should do some sample design work. Don't assume they know you can design. Someone else was like, go to the store, see what's selling, do your market research. Another person was like, there aren't too many people that look like me or you in the high fashion space. So it's bigger than us or bigger than me. And I could be paving a way. So what was going to be a like a four page presentation turned into like a 40 page presentation. I go out to Milan, present to Donatello. One on one. She starts bringing people into the room. She loves it. At the end of it, she's like, I love you. I want to hire you. I want you to like move out to Milan or what do you want to do? She was like, do you want to consult? Do you want to come out here for like a season? What do you want? So she was so flexible about it. I was like, can I have my own design studio in la? And then I'll come here once a month for shows and all that kind of stuff. Stuff. Factory visits and, and, and stuff. And she was like, sure. So then I went outside and did my like, pursuit of happiness.

[Markin Delicato]

Like, absolutely.

[Rory]

That's also.

[Markin Delicato]

Absolutely that moment. Like, but.

[Rory]

But to speak to her too, usually, especially on this podcast, we on a lot of execs. That's an amazing story from an exec perspective too. That.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

Because clearly she's right.

[Rory]

Like, of. Of what you've turned out to be. Clearly she saw a vision that you had and knew how talented you were.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yes.

[Rory]

Because that's a crazy thing to just be that flexible. Like, what do you want to do? But most execs don't do that type of stuff.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Not, not taking anything, especially when it's unproven. She changed my life. So not taking anything away from the decision that she made and maybe what she saw in me. But another thing that was happening Simultaneously was Virgil was just doing what he did at lv.

[Rory]

Yeah, of course.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so now you have this world, this high fashion world that maybe isn't the most familiar with people that look like a Virgil or myself doing shit like that. And so I definitely think that the storm that he was creating where he was, was kind of just opening up to the eyes to that entire world.

[Rory]

Sure.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You know, and not completely, but just maybe making them think, like, damn, like. And then not only that, it was. I'm another one coming off the Kanye tree. And during that period of time, anyone that was a designer and actually, I was. I was just on the cutting room floor, and she made me realize this. A male designer, which I believe to be true by just proximity. You were knighted. You were also magical. So, like, I think the combination of Donatello observing something in me, but then also Virgil showing them what we can do and then also having a little bit of that Yeezy dust on me.

[Markin Delicato]

How much of influence, speaking of Virgil was Virgil for you, with everything he did with off white and then what he did, obviously, with footwear, and now to what Pharrell is doing. Like, these are guys that. I mean, Pharrell in particular, somebody that we've always looked at and always just, like, had the right pieces on and the way he put it together was always just a fashionable person. But to see the spaces that Pharrell's in now, obviously how much of that inspires you and has helped you along.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Your journey, I mean, I would just say with the Virgil, it was really more about representation. I think the obvious things are like, wow, it's like, OB president, right? It's like, wow, we can get there. We can. We can be accepted in this space and have success. But then it was like, the smaller things I was recently saying, this is simply him just traveling, like, traveling business class in a hoodie with Jordans on. And then he gets to the airport, an old white dude picks him up, grabs his bags for him. He's in the back of whatever dope car. And, like, these are, like, superficial things. But then also, they were very eye opening because anytime I've seen this in a movie, it was a white guy in a certain suit.

[Markin Delicato]

Right.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You know what I mean? And so now I was like, wow, like, I can have this too, and I don't have to be a rapper to do it. Yeah. So just that level of representation and inspiration was really powerful just because I never really seen it done like that before. And now he's going into this, like, high fashion Environment and accepted and. And so that's ultimately what I achieved at Versace. You know, I was in this environment wherein like Obama supreme, like cropped pants and like. And like hoodies and tie dye shirts. But it was like I belonged and I brought value. And so I think getting to witness what he did made me comfortable doing what I did. And then for Pharrell, I think more he's like a representation of a black alien. There are just some individuals that have kind of just inspired me and reminded me that black people exist on a spectrum and it's not a monolith. And so whereas something may have been written off as weird weirdo shit. Shout out. Troy av.

[Markin Delicato]

The ladies.

[Rory]

I mean, if you go through that whole Kendrick and Troy beef, I think we see where it landed.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But yeah, I just think that, like, it's like people like Pharrell or Tyler or Yay or even myself for people to see and just simply witness different. Yeah. Regardless of talent or anything, just witness like confidence and being different in individualism and, you know, so just. That's why I lean into just being myself so much, you know, because I. I've witnessed people like a Pharrell do the same and get so much success from it.

[Markin Delicato]

Literally being himself.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Being himself.

[Rory]

You know, at a time when it was corny to be everything that Pharrell was when he first entered in. Into the world. I do want to ask you again with. With how these high end designers have been remixing shoes. It's getting like a little insane. Who. Who redid this Sam Smith joint? Everyone was wearing those forever.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Oh, McQueen.

[Rory]

Yeah, McQueen. The McQueen ones. With that. When we was in Atlanta and the. Across from the. The mall you get killed at, they got the high end mall. I went in there, the Margielas. It was really the question threes. Like, I was like, this is the. They're not even trying to hide it. It's legitimately the question three.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I think it's. At the end of the day, it's like business. And I don't think they're like, this is purely speculation, but I don't think they're too invested in like that conversation because they don't really give a fuck. And they also know. I think they know that their consumer doesn't either know about the original shoot nor do they give a fuck. Like, I think if you went up to someone wearing those like McQueen's that are maybe like 800 and you were like, like, those look like $135 Adidas, they'd be like get out of my face.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You know what I mean? And so I don't know if the consumers are even like.

[Rory]

Yeah, even from the Stan Smith or even the questions though, like is there a designer that's in that office that's putting that up on a projector? Like let's literally just redo this.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Well, if you think about it like if there was a shoe that's been successful for like, like 50 years and then you identify that you can probably make money off of it. I'm not saying that's something I would ever want to do, but of course, especially if you're. Especially if you're a brand that maybe you're for business isn't thriving. One of the smartest things in the world would be to just identify like a classic shoe. There's also McQueen did it would. Did it with a. I think an Air Max 90 or an Air Max 1. There's a shoe that looks exactly like that.

[Rory]

The air max 95 maybe.

[Salehi Bimbri]

But that did.

[Rory]

That was insane.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. I think they're more so worried about the like the. At least in the sneaker game the business instead of the over the design integrity.

[Rory]

Perhaps you guys were talking off Mike that you feel like merch wise you really don't need anything past a Gildan hoodie.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I thought that was an interesting combo you guys were having off microphone.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yes.

[Rory]

That I think a lot of people that listen to this that do their own merch would.

[Markin Delicato]

I understand what Saleh is saying because when you look at guys like, you know what Westside Gun was able to do with their merch. I mean those were champion blanks.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

And Wes might have two fucking Rolls Royces and two Halloween fucking, you know, champion blinks. But I just, you know, I just feel like now more than ever quality and texture. I think those are kind of what set yourself apart. I get what you're saying. If you're selling, you know, mass amounts of merch then you know, you can kind of like. But I still feel like, you know, when you have something that lasts, you know, something that, you know, I can have this hoodie for three years. I can wash it over and over and it gets better with each wash. Kind of like the worn look. I just feel like to me I'm on that side of the merch because I want to wear my merch. I don't want to just have it and collect it. I want to wear this. I want to wash it. I want to be able to travel with it. Do you still feel like the Lesser quality or the lighter quality, not as heavy on the quality, but obviously just the moment. Being able to have something that says, okay, I was a part of this moment. You think that's the more important part of it?

[Salehi Bimbri]

It. Yeah, because I think all the things you listed are things that people expect from a brand, not merch. Like, if you. If you saw someone right now.

[Markin Delicato]

But merch is almost a brand now these days.

[Salehi Bimbri]

No, that's a good point. But I. I think it's a little bit more, like, temporary, like, because I think merch constantly has to shift with, like, what the artist is doing and, like, the moment. Whereas a brand is a little bit more timeless if you think about, like, regardless of how you feel about them currently. But if you think about someone wearing a Yeezus tee or something, you're gonna see that tea, and it's gonna bring you back to a time, especially if it has the ear on it. You're like, oh, man. That was when he was floating over the stage or black skinhead or whatever. You're not gonna be like, let me feel that collar.

[Rory]

Yeah, okay.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Okay. Fair.

[Rory]

Bring that collar. That does make sense. I will say, though, Yeezus to me, was the greatest live tour I've ever seen, personally. Just my opinion.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You.

[Markin Delicato]

I glow in the dark was amazing.

[Rory]

Insane. I bought the merch at the Yeezus tour, and outside of the design being cool, and I'm not about the Confederate flag one, whatever the other one was, the first thing I did think when I put the shirt on was, like, I've never bought merch that was cut this way. It was a good. Like, it. Okay, well, they cut it different. Like, I remember sitting there like, oh, this is cut different. Like, I appreciated that it felt like a more quality tea, and it was sold at the same price at any. Any concert. I would buy merch at the Garden.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Rory]

So I hear you on. On the merch side, but that did. That did, like, resonate with me. Like, this shirt. I could wear this shirt outside, like, to a party.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. I love quality, so I'm not. I'm definitely not speaking against that, but I think the idea of merch is ultimately to have a high margin, I think.

[Rory]

Oh, no. Oh, for sure.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Absolutely.

[Rory]

On the business side. Yeah, no, absolutely.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So if you're investing, if you're leaning into, like, quality too much.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Your fans will love you. Yeah. But I don't know, you know, and this is. I'm speaking about just mer.

[Rory]

Mean, our. Our first merch line that I think is. Is the greatest podcast merch line that ever existed. Oh, we were. We went in the red purposely, like, we knew we were going to lose money just based off the quality. And to me, that was the best thing. And I was fine with losing money in that regard because the quality was that good. That shit was like damn near John Elliott hoodie.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Like, so.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Like, I think who does it perfectly is, like, Travis Scott. Because I've Travis Scott. I've heard this again, I don't know. No confirmation, but I've heard that the quality of his merch isn't the best, but the design.

[Markin Delicato]

Quality is terrible.

[Rory]

Yeah, the design makes the quality look okay when it's on your body.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. Like, it's executed the design.

[Markin Delicato]

The color palettes is why he does it. Amazing. But it's like I wore the sweatsuit when he did the. I forgot which drop it. Which cactus jack drop it was probably was the first or the second one. I wore the sweatsuit, and by the time I got home, like, in between the legs right here was like, the limp balls. Like, this is a brand new. I'm talking about brand new, first day wore. And it had like. Like the limp balls. Like, I wore this for three summers. So I'm like. I'm like, travis, we can't be doing this, bro.

[Rory]

Another person that does it well with equality. St. John. Like, my St. John sweats.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

They're like 8 years old.

[Markin Delicato]

Some of the best. He has some of the best merch that I think I've ever seen for any artist.

[Rory]

But he again, and I don't know his business, but I believe he makes a good amount.

[Markin Delicato]

He makes a lot of money off of merch. Like, the merch line at his shows after the show is over is like. It's like almost like a meet and greet.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

Like, they're online, waiting to get. But again, he makes it very specific to the album. It's a whole story. The album's a drop. Like you said, you wanna have this. And years later, look back like, oh, this is when I went and saw him at this. This was the drop. This was the album. But again, the quality. Also very heavy cotton, very heavy sweats. And I think that's a lot of the reasons why people love his merch. Cause they know I can have this sweatsuit for five, six years, and it's gonna look like I just got it last week. Whereas with Travis just, again, selling a ton of merch, but the quality, I'm like, we. At this point, he can. I'm not saying it has to be fair.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

God.

[Markin Delicato]

Quality.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

I'm not saying it has to be Jerry's, but we gotta find. We gotta get a little closer to quality.

[Rory]

To me, it's more cut than it.

[Markin Delicato]

Is quality in that I wasn't mad at the cut, but the fact that I had limp balls in between my legs and I only had the suit on for three hours was crazy. I just thought that. But again, I was happy to have it because it was a moment. He had just put out the sneaker. Now I got the sweat to the sneaker. Like you said, it's a whole storyline. So I get that. Who are some of your favorite current designers as far as, like, sneakers? Like, who are you wearing outside of Sponge and your products? Whose sneakers do you enjoy wearing?

[Salehi Bimbri]

There's this brand called Vis Vim.

[Markin Delicato]

I've heard of them.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You've heard of them? It's a Japanese brand. I got a jacket over there. They're not really a sneaker brand by any, but I wouldn't say. But they make this sandal called the Christo, and it's like this kind of like you've seen probably Travis Scott or like, John Mayer wearing it.

[Markin Delicato]

Okay.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And it's what's funny about it. There was this, like, tweet about it that said that the Christo is like the male version of the Louis Vuitton heel because it doesn't feel that good, but you feel like a baddie.

[Rory]

Okay.

[Markin Delicato]

Okay.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so it's like, finally.

[Markin Delicato]

Finally, we feel like baddies. Yes, finally.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. So it's like. Like, it's honestly not the most comfortable, but it's like just a really well made sandal that you can have for, like, 10 years and kind of molds to your foot like a Birkenstock. And so Visim as a brand is just like a top tier brand that I love. And then also, you know what's tough with that question? I'm going to Complex Con on this weekend and I get asked that question. All these, like, kids running up to me, asking me if I'm confident. Yeah. And I can't really shout out a lot of the brand, the shoes that I like, because I am not in partnership with them. And so that's an endorsement.

[Rory]

I totally get it.

[Markin Delicato]

Listen, I get it.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

It's crazy how Soleil, he gotta, like, he gotta think like that now. Like, yeah, I just can't do it. But that's, you know, a testament to the work that he put in.

[Rory]

I wanted to not approach this topic because it's gonna get Me riled up. But tonight is the Knicks home opener.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And you work with the Enemy.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Wait, so you guys are both Knicks fans, Right? Right.

[Rory]

Die Hard.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Okay, so first, let me tell, like.

[Rory]

Live and die on.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Let me tell you the full. Let me tell you the full story of this, and then you'll understand.

[Rory]

Okay? So Tyrese Halliburton, for those that don't know who is. Is enemy number one.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yes.

[Rory]

Whooped our ass.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So I signed with Puma. It's a new opportunity for me because, as you said, I've been telling all these outdoor stories, and this is an opportunity to tell basketball story. Grew up playing basketball, high school basketball, basketball camps. Got a lot of bodies in that basketball court in Battery Park City.

[Markin Delicato]

Okay.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And I signed with Puma. It's basketball. I'm like, great. I get to, like, do the whole basketball thing. And they also want me to help them sign a basketball player. So they gave me a list of basketball players, and the one that I chose was Tyrese Halliburton. Truthfully, I chose him because I saw what he did to the Knicks. Not this most recent playoffs, but the one before.

[Rory]

Yeah, yeah, right? It's been rough both times.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So we have to pitch to him, we sign him, we make the shoe, and then he has the most, like, amazing, you know, season, whatever. In. In response to what you just said, if it was between your team and your career, what are you choosing?

[Rory]

Of course. And what's funny is, after that last playoff series, like, yeah, of course we shitted on Tyrese Halliburton every time we got a mic in front of us. But once we got beat, it was like, that was one of the best playoffs performances I've ever seen in my entire life. Like, he is one of the most talented players.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Oh, yeah.

[Rory]

It's like, definitely, yeah. No, of course I work with him, but it would be crazy if he's a New Yorker. I was a little mad when I found out you were the one doing a sneaker.

[Salehi Bimbri]

No, I mean, listen, like, anytime I'm around him, I'm. I'm vocal about the Knicks thing. He talks his, too, so.

[Rory]

As he should.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. There's a nice relationship there. I remember game one of the finals because we were trying to figure out when he was going to wear the shoes.

[Rory]

Yeah, Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I was telling him to wear him against New York, obviously. Selfishly, he was like, no, I want to wait for the finals. Like, he. So he. He had the vision that he made it there. He already knew. Yeah. And then I thought that I would get emotional if I saw him, like, hit a three or dunk, because this is something. Basketball is the reason that I became a forward designer. Yeah. And I saw him stretching in the tunnel, and I started weeping, like, proper, like, really? Yeah. That's amazing, though. This was the little kid in me finally accomplishing the thing I wanted to accomplish my entire life at that moment, you know? And so. So I cried. And then he hit the game winner.

[Markin Delicato]

Cried again.

[Rory]

These shoes are gonna.

[Salehi Bimbri]

No, you know. You know what I did then? I like. I, like, yelled so fucking loud. Because there have been a decent amount of people that have not allowed me to have this opportunity of designing a basketball shoe.

[Markin Delicato]

Let's shit on them. Saleh.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Fucking come on. You said it. So I will say that I definitely felt some level of redemption. Absolutely. When that happened. And then at the end of it or right after that, he's at the press conference with the shoes on the desk, and he's giving credit to the shoes.

[Rory]

Love that.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so it couldn't have been a more perfect rollout, for sure. Some store book shit. And then, unfortunately, it ended it the way it did. But, you know, even him making that decision to play in that game is, you know, a testament to him as a player. So I'm a Knicks fan, but also, my career is way more important. And, you know, Tyrese Halliburn is.

[Markin Delicato]

The Knicks are not going to help you if you're down to two months rent.

[Salehi Bimbri]

There you go. Not at all.

[Markin Delicato]

I can promise you Brunson won't be in the.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Not at all. I still haven't gotten. Been able to get any Knicks tickets from.

[Markin Delicato]

Exactly. So, yeah, that man.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So. But yeah, it definitely. It was weird. Like, I was in Indiana. We just did a popup for the Hal Mart where I'm, like, doing Pacers trivia with Pacers fans.

[Markin Delicato]

And, like, as a Nick fan, I.

[Rory]

Know that is because some of their best trivia is killing us. That is so their whole legacy is just destroying ours.

[Markin Delicato]

That is fire. So talk to us about this book. Pass me this book.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Rory.

[Markin Delicato]

The book is fine. I mean, just the aesthetic, like, it's hard.

[Rory]

Yeah. The material and everything.

[Markin Delicato]

I make shoes.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I make shoes. Published by Rizzoli. The front is a painting by my buddy, Delphin Finley.

[Markin Delicato]

Wait, hold on. Not to cut you off.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yes.

[Markin Delicato]

This.

[Rory]

The texture of the entire thing. And I like how he did, like, a track. This is album.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah. This is insane. Like. Like, again, a attention to detail, man.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I love bro.

[Markin Delicato]

I love it.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I can't Take all the credit. A design agency named Play Lab or called Play Lab.

[Markin Delicato]

Look at this.

[Salehi Bimbri]

They. They designed the book, so credit to them. Dolphin Finley painted the COVID I think I'm one of the first. The first non rappers to get an Andre feature. We got an Andre feature in that book.

[Markin Delicato]

Wow.

[Rory]

Which was going to be my last question before we get out of here.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, yeah. So Andre and I have sparked a friendship. We hike often. And I've just found on these hikes, like with him and a lot of other people, I have a lot of great conversations. Yeah. I don't know if it's because you're like isolated, common goal nature, but we've had many. And when I was doing this book, I was like, bro, is there any way we could, like, record one of them, transcribe it and put it in the book? So that's what that is. There's a good six or seven pages of just. Oh, wait, go back, go back. You're right to the small. They're right there. That is. Here we go. We're back. That is myself, O.J. simpson. Nicole Brown Simpson and the Ninja Turtles. Yes, that. And my dad took that photo. Yes. And that's history right there.

[Rory]

This should have been. This should have been the COVID Can I use this photo as my next single? That's the wildest photo I've ever seen. All right, so where was this at when you saw O.J.

[Salehi Bimbri]

So my dad's a photographer, and I think he had to. I think. I think OJ Was doing something with the Ninja Turtles. And I was. I wanted to come because I was psyched to meet the Ninja Turtles. I didn't know. I didn't know who OJ Was. Yes. I'm wearing, like, a Ninja Turtles, like, jumpsuit.

[Rory]

Yeah, that rat costume is crazy.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah. And then. And then actually, that next page right there, that is a letter from Sheck Wes, like a good, like eight years ago, before he was like, sheck Wes. And it's hilarious. You obviously don't need to read it now, but it's a really good letter. And he starts it with, this is a piece of art. And at the. When I read it at the time, I thought he was crazy, but reading it going back now, like, it actually is a piece of art.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Markin Delicato]

No, this is. This, this. This book is incredible, man. I can't wait to really get into it. And.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Thank you.

[Markin Delicato]

Read it. And yeah, the attention. This is fire.

[Rory]

Yeah, this is.

[Markin Delicato]

This is dope with.

[Rory]

With some of those hikes. Obviously, a lot of, you know, those conversations with Andre 3000 on those hikes would be private and personal. Outside of the one in the book. Is there any that you can share of just what that relationship has been like?

[Salehi Bimbri]

I think one of the most powerful things that I've witnessed with him is just like, that he's really human. And just some of the vulnerability that he's displayed was kind of refreshing because you think some of these people that are living at such a high level are like these godlike creatures. But with some of our hikes, it was around the time of, like, right before his flute album. And just some of the things he expressed about being uncertain, about making certain decisions or even releasing a flute album was really empowering because myself, at whatever level I'm at, I have so many insecurities and vulnerabilities and imposter syndromes. But you look at all the people that we, like, worship, and you're like, no, they just. They cough.

[Rory]

Yeah. They must be so sure of everything they do.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And so just to kind of like witness that I thought was pretty powerful.

[Rory]

Yeah, that was dope, man. Yeah, that was a. There's been a running joke on this podcast. Well, not even a running joke. It's been a fact. Fact. Everyone has met Andre 3000 except you in SoHo. And I remember after that joke started, it must have been the first week I saw. He was in your studio, your crib, playing the flute. And I was like, everybody.

[Markin Delicato]

Yeah, he just avoid you, Rory. He doesn't want to go to la.

[Salehi Bimbri]

That's. That's where he's. Where he'd be.

[Rory]

Yeah, I've read some article. Venice. He's like full time or something.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I don't know about all that.

[Rory]

No, I'm. I wouldn't say. I wouldn't say something that he didn't put in when he was. He did whatever. The only piece he did after the flute album, talked about how he met even some of the band members of that they all went to the same grocery store in Venice and that he was living in Venice. And that's how the whole shit had came together.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Book available when it is available now. You can go to any retailer that has Rizzoli Books or Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

[Markin Delicato]

Go get this man.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, go get it. Support me.

[Markin Delicato]

Amazing. Sponge available.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Sponge available also now on Be a Sponge dot com. And. And we were just at Kith. And we're about to be at Complex Con. Oh, yeah, I should probably plug that. Gonna have a booth at ComplexCon. A sponge booth. There will also be a Salehi Museum. Of just past samples and projects that I've worked on. And this is maybe you could consider it like the doorway to this brand I'm about to launch as well as the book.

[Markin Delicato]

Love it. Before you go, any plans for brick and mortar in New York City?

[Salehi Bimbri]

I think any brand that has a brick and mortar first needs to have success digitally. So that is right now the goal. And then for the first store, if it were up to me, I'd actually probably be in Japan. Yeah, I'm a New Yorker. I said that five times before anyone else.

[Markin Delicato]

But you got that, you got that aesthetic. The old Japanese guy that can wear like, that's your.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Yeah, Japanese fashion inspires me because I definitely.

[Rory]

Because I think in America is everywhere now.

[Salehi Bimbri]

I feel like in America there's so many rules about like what you can wear at what age and where you can wear it and where you can wear it. But then in Japan, like you'll see like a 60 year old, 70 year old dude in like, like full camo and some Jordans.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

Yeah.

[Salehi Bimbri]

And he's like being taken very seriously. Right. And I, you know what I mean?

[Markin Delicato]

I like that he's being taken seriously.

[Salehi Bimbri]

You know, So I just. That inspires me. So now it's like, you know, where, where we're told that like maybe someone of a certain age can't wear like, yeah, fit.

[Markin Delicato]

Like I feel like that's only our culture.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Exactly.

[Markin Delicato]

We only do.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Exactly, exactly. And it's something wrong. There's something fundamentally wrong with that.

[Markin Delicato]

So, Saleh, thank you for coming through, man. Appreciate it. The book is fire. I can't wait to really get into it and read it it and just, and just, you know, read more of your story. Congratulations on everything that you do. Support you here. And I'm saying it now before we sign off. He will be designing the first new Rory and mall sneaker.

[Rory]

It is a fact.

[Markin Delicato]

We're going to make it happen. I'm going to keep harassing him until we make that happen.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Wait, wait, wait. Can we get a shoulder roller? Can we get these numbers up? Get a shoulder roll for him.

[Rory]

We are not shout out to all the noobs. Yeah, I retired my shoulders, I think in 2012. I don't even know how to work.

[Markin Delicato]

I'm hearing your back crack. The back is cracking.

[Rory]

Where the. You got to put oil in them.

[Salehi Bimbri]

That's great.

[Markin Delicato]

Thank you, my brother. We appreciate you.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Appreciate you guys.

[Rory]

I'm that gender. That's the lady. Appreciate you, bro.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Appreciate you, bro. Man.

[Ana Ortiz]

You know that big bargain detergent jug is 80% water, right? It doesn't clean as well. 80% water. I thought I was getting a better deal because it's so big. If you want a better clean, Tide pods are only 12% water. The rest is pure, concentrated cleaning ingredients.

[Rory]

Oh, let me make an announcement.

[Salehi Bimbri]

Attention, shoppers, if you want a real deal, try Tide Pods.

[Ana Ortiz]

Stop paying for watered down detergents. Pay for clean. If it's gotta be clean, it's gotta be Tide pods. Water content based on the leading bargain liquid detergent, Sami Gente. It's Ana Ortiz.

[Rory]

And I'm Markin Delicato.

[Ana Ortiz]

You might know us as Hilda and.

[Rory]

Justin from Ugly Betty.

[Ana Ortiz]

Welcome to our new podcast, Viva Betty.

[Markin Delicato]

Yay.

[Ana Ortiz]

We're rewatching the series from start to.

[Rory]

Finish and talking to iconic guests like Betty herself, America Ferreira.

[Ana Ortiz]

There was this moment when the glasses went on and it was like, this is our Betty.

[Rory]

Listen to Viva Betty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Jonathan. I'm Jonathan Goldstein, and on the new season of Heavyweight. And so I pointed the gun at him and said, this isn't a joke. A man who robbed a bank when he was 14 years old and a centenarian rediscovers a love lost 80 years ago.

[Ana Ortiz]

How can a 101-year-old woman fall in love again?

[Rory]

Listen to heavyweight on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Kyle McLaughlin]

Hey, I'm Kyle McLaughlin. You might know me as that guy from Twin Peaks, Sex and the City, or just the Internet Stand. I have a new podcast called what Are We Even Doing? Where I embark on a noble quest to understand the brilliant chaos of youth culture. Each week, I invite someone fascinating to join me to talk about navigating this high speed rollercoaster we call reality. Join me and my delightful guests every Thursday and let's get weird together in a good way. Listen to what are we even doing on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Salehi Bimbri]

This is an iHeart podcast.