ITS: Andy (@andy_0161)
What is your favourite sneaker memory?
I actually have a few but if I was to pick one I'd say being gifted a pair of Staple Pigeon x Puma suede from Jeff Staple himself. I'm a huge fan of the Staple Brand. I have the pigeon tattooed on my ankle 😂 Jeff hit me up on instagram and asked me my size. A week or so later I got home from work to a "you've missed a delivery post" The day after I went to the post office and was genuinely taken aback a bit that he'd got right on it and sent me out a pair before they'd released
What is your 'Grail' sneaker and why?
I think the work grail gets lost in hype sometimes and I get it. It's nice to own something exclusive expensive ect. For me a grail is either something either almost impossible to own or a shoe with a real meaning or back story personal to you. So my Grail is the Reebok Omni Zone ii Aka Dee Browns ( For anyone who doesn't know who Dee Brown is look up the 1991 NBA slam dunk contest) When I was a kid a Saturday morning TV show held a competition to design a pair of Reebok pump and the winner got their shoe made. Me and my cousin drew our pictures and got my mum to send them off to the show. A few weeks later they picked the winner and I could see my picture in the background and for a minute thought that meant I'd won (I didn't) I begged my mum for the longest time to buy me a pair but she said she couldn't justify the price A while later she agreed on 1 condition we never tell my dad how much they cost. So for me it was Dee Brown and not Jordan. Luckily for me Reebok retrod that exact pair a few years back so I doubled up
Where do you live and what is 'Sneaker Culture' like there?
I'm in/from Manchester. It's not too bad here I mean we don't get the spotlight and opportunities open to the people in London. The community is bigger than our hometowns though. Strangely I'm admin for a sneaker group based in Pittsburgh US with like 20 thousand members. I'm like the token English guy so I'm good friends with a lot of people from there. I send them pairs we only get here and they do the same for me.
What does community mean to you?
Friendships, interests and networking.
What do you enjoy aside sneakers?
I have a 2 year old boy and being a Dad is the best thing that ever happened to me and I work with people /kids with learning disabilities autism and down syndrome so if I'm honest I get very little free time my job is a huge commitment I do 24 and 31 hour shifts so when I'm not working I'm with my baby boy.