Spotlights by Melissa Westphal 12/23
Interview with John Gagliardi
Founder of Kane Footwear
What was the inspiration of Kane Footwear?
Playing sports my whole life in College, then professionally and Team USA I have been around top athletes in the locker rooms and I saw what everyone was wearing on their feet after practices and games. I saw these same slides when I visited my friends at NFL facilities. I wanted to create a functional product that all athletes can use that is better for your feet and helps you recover faster so you are at your best the next day. I pulled in Dr Geller, a top Podiatrist who works with Ultra marathoners and NBA players and he worked with our designer and helped shape the design points of the shoe to provide these benefits.
How do you balance running a business and being a coach Dad?
A ton of planning goes into coaching and running Kane Footwear. With four kids and three of them now active in sports, I need to have the month laid out in advance with the kids' sports schedules and my business responsibilities and travel. My wife Heather does a huge amount of the planning and we both make sure we are present at games. There is rarely an occasion one of us is not at a game of theirs.
What advice would you give someone looking to start a company?
A lot goes into launching a company. There will be days you will question everything but you need to just keep moving forward. You have to have a unique product that you can bring to the world. Then build a great plan that will help people know about the product. Next piece is building a strong team that can help you execute and bring the plan to life. Teams win championships in sports and the same thing goes for start up businesses. We have a great team at Kane Footwear!
@kanefootwear
