DETROIT – It’s a unique opportunity for Pensole Lewis College Detroit students to design and manufacture shoes at the Foot Locker Footwear Creation Studio.
“You have every machine that you need to make a pair of dress shoes, sneakers, or boots all in there,” PLC Detroit President D’Wayne Edwards said. “You don’t see it at many schools the way that we have laid it out, and our partnership with Foot Locker allowed this to happen.”
State and local leaders and community stakeholders gathered for the grand opening Wednesday morning at 200 Walker Street.
PLC Detroit and Foot Locker officials said the studio’s impact will extend well beyond its wall.
“We are super excited to have the opportunity to inspire the next generation of creators,” Foot Locker Chief Operations Officer Elliot Rodgers said.
PLC Detroit alum Angel Buckens designed the studio.
“I am really excited to see this work here on display,” Buckens said. “I want students to be able to just come into this space and feel very inspired by what they see.”
PLC Detroit is the only Historically Black College or University focused on design.
The college was founded as Lewis Business College nearly 100 years ago, but it closed in 2015 due to declining enrollment and the loss of its accreditation.
The college was reestablished in 2021 by Edwards, who has decades of experience in the footwear design industry.
“Pensole changed my life in the best way,” PLC Detroit alum Bryan Wilson said. “It has given me so many opportunities and work with different companies.”
Edwards said some of the shoes that students design will be sold at local retailers.
“This is a school that I wish I was able to attend and the school I wish I was able to hire from when I was in the industry as a hiring manager,” Edwards said.