Looking to break into the sneaker industry but not sure where to start? Living outside of the capital and trying to carve your own path? Welcome to Laces in Places - our series that spotlights all the talented people in the sneaker scene that often get overlooked thanks to the industry’s London-centric view.
This week, we head to Bath to speak to Ross Wilson - a DJ, writer and brand consultant who also just happens to have curated some of the most legendary streetwear and sneaker auctions of all time. One of the most knowledgeable and passionate people in the scene, Ross tells us about his journey into consulting and curation, what it's like to live between different cities and the trials and tribulations of being freelance. Read on to find out more…
Hi Ross, thanks for joining us! First things first, please feel free to introduce yourself and tell us about how you first got into sneakers… Hey, I’m Ross Wilson - DJ, brand consultant, dad, skater, and someone who probably likes footwear too much.
As a kid, I spent a lot of time in London’s Great Ormond St Hospital due to a rare breathing condition, so I wasn’t able to compete in any team sports and therefore gravitated to things I could do at my own pace like BMX riding and skateboarding. Sneakers were such a huge part of that lifestyle so I became fascinated with the American footwear of the time like checkerboard Vans slip-ons, Nike Bruins, and Converse Chuck Taylors. Then in 1985 I saw a photo in Thrasher magazine of my favourite skater Mark Gonzales skating in a pair of red, black & white Nike hi-top sneakers and I became obsessed with them. By coincidence, a relative of mine went to the States that year and came back with a pair of these sneakers for me. At the time I knew absolutely nothing about basketball so I had no idea these were the debut signature shoes of a young baller named Michael Jordan. I’ve been hooked on sneakers ever since.
You keep yourself busy throughout a variety of projects - DJing, consulting, writing - you name it! Could you tell us more about each of them and what they involve? Much like skateboarding and BMXing, music has been a passion since I was a kid, so as soon as I could quit education I started throwing parties and events, alongside DJing at various clubs. Nightclubs and DJs were hit hard during the pandemic, so a couple of years ago I started a music curation service where I advise and supply playlists to soundtrack businesses like hotels, bars, restaurants, and shops.
Alongside the music stuff, I also work with Sotheby’s auction house, consult for various footwear and lifestyle brands, work on international consumer research projects with the wonderful team at PSUEDO, and write editorial content for multiple platforms and companies.
One new thing I'm excited about, is to have recently started working with a product development company on a really interesting sneaker-related project, so watch this space
You spent a lot of time in New York in the ‘90s - that must have been amazing to experience. How did it feel to watch the sneaker and streetwear scene take off in front of your eyes? NYC will forever be my favourite city and a real home-from-home. I first went out there in 1994 with nothing but my skateboard and an empty suitcase. It used to be a great pound-dollar exchange rate so that suitcase came back stuffed with shoes, records and clothing! Discovering places for the first time like the huge record store basement ‘Beat Street’ in Brooklyn, a little independent skate store called ‘Supreme’ in Soho, and the evening skate scene at Astor Place was eye-opening, I instantly felt at home there.
Sneaker culture was just an underground niche scene back then, nothing was “hyped” or limited edition. I would search the five boroughs for discounted shoes that weren’t available in the U.K. back then - big chain stores like Foot Action, Athlete’s Foot, V.I.M, Modell’s and Champs Sports would often have sale racks of $20-$50 sneakers like Nike Dunks, Terminators, Air Forces, Air Trainer 1s, Air Revolutions, etc. in colourways I’d never seen before. I’d hit up spots like Fulton St Mall in Brooklyn, NY Transit on Broadway and Training Camp at Bryant Park, to find hidden sneaker gems at bargain prices.
When I returned to the U.K. I found that whenever I was out DJing or record shopping I’d get stopped by like-minded people who would ask me where I got my shoes. This was pre-NikeTalk, pre-social media, and even pre-eBay, so there wasn’t really an online sneaker community and therefore it was a fairly close-knit scene. I’d end up regularly going back to New York to source trainers for people in the U.K. and through this became friends with all the characters and players of the New York sneaker and streetwear community.
In the mid-'90s the downtown streetwear/sneaker scene was really exciting and special, with unique independent boutiques popping up all the time - Union, Nort 235, Prohibit, Supreme, Classic Kicks, Stackhouse, Alife, Alife Rivington Club, Recon, SSUR-Plus, Nom de Guerre, Clientele, X-Large, The Reed Space, and DQM were all regular hang-outs. Through my friendships with the store workers, I’d then begin to supply them with U.K./E.U. exclusive release sneakers - for a while a lot of the staff at Supreme, Stussy and even NikeTown were wearing shoes supplied by me from England. It was a fun time and people had a genuine appreciation for well-designed sneakers, rather than hype and resale value - they just wanted to look good, rather than look expensive, it was a different kind of flex back then.
You’ve since worked to curate specialist streetwear and sneaker sales for huge auction houses such as Sotheby's and Christies. Can you tell us how this gig came about and how the curation process works? At the start of 2018, I held a large archive sale of a lot of the gear I’d accumulated from Supreme since I first went there back in 1994 - it was 24 years' worth of stuff, about 1,000 items in total. The project received quite a bit of press attention, and out of the blue, someone from Sotheby’s in New York reached out to me and asked if I’d be interested in working on some projects together.
I met the team out there and liked their ideas, so we started working together on sales in New York, Los Angeles, Hong Kong and London. Part of my role involves giving my opinion on various items for consideration, and the other part is finding potential consignors with interesting collections who may be interested in selling them at auction. The heritage auction houses realise certain products from the sneaker and streetwear culture are the covered future collectables for a new generation, so it totally makes sense for them to have their place within it. The team there are really great to work with and are pretty open-minded, I don’t think this would’ve ever happened a decade ago.
What would you say has been your biggest career highlight to date? That’s a tough question. There have been so many great DJ gigs where the vibe is just electrifying and everyone is going crazy, those are always a good time. Interviewing so many people I genuinely admire from the world of skateboarding, music and fashion has been a trip! Maybe my Supreme Archive Sale I previously mentioned - that project took about six months and a great team of people to make it happen. My old friend Fran Cutler put together a launch party for it in London which was a night I’ll never forget.
Your work requires you to move around and travel worldwide - how have you coped with that? I always really loved that part of it as it gave me the opportunity to meet new people, experience new places, get inspired by new things, and eat a lot of good food! It used to be pretty full-on for a while with trips to NYC every other month, Berlin and Long Beach trade shows each January and July, DJ gigs and skate events all over the place. It doesn’t really happen as often now as a lot of stuff is done digitally, and since the pandemic, I’ve barely been anywhere as so much can be done working from home nowadays. I do miss travelling, and really miss New York - the last time I was out there was January 2020, then the world changed shortly after that! I’m desperate to get back out to Tokyo again too, that city never fails to blow my mind and is always changing.
After living such a jet-set lifestyle, what made you want to settle in Bath? Well, I was born in Bristol, so Bath wasn’t too much of a departure really. I dropped out of education and started hosting parties around the West Country which quickly became a legit business, so I ended up staying there. It’s a really nice place to live with some beautiful architecture and green spaces. It’s only a couple of hours to London for meetings and DJ bookings, and close enough to Bristol airport, so it's really convenient. We recently moved out of Bath earlier this year to a place more in the countryside which is a nice change.
You tend to work on a freelance basis - how have you found essentially managing your own business, and what would your best advice be for anyone looking to go down this route? Freelance can be really tough, but it can also be really rewarding. Sometimes the workload is a little dry, and other times you have too much to juggle all at once - there’s often no middle ground. I love to be busy and love working across different platforms in different disciplines - it makes life really interesting so days are rarely the same.
Being freelance does create its own challenges - you have to be self-disciplined, mindful of budgets, manage expectations and be careful with your own time, as that’s the most valuable thing when you’re self-employed.
My biggest advice for someone looking at going out alone is just don’t be afraid to turn down work if you feel it's not right for you, and always aim for what you feel you’re worth - brands, companies and individuals will always try to get your advice and opinions for free, but when you’re freelance your time and knowledge are your most prized assets, so never sell yourself short.
So much of your work relies on knowing people and building contacts. What would your advice be to someone who might feel shy about putting themselves out there? The ongoing surgery when I was younger resulted in my vocal cords becoming permanently damaged so my voice is really quiet, almost like a whisper. This could’ve easily held me back and made me become introverted, but it actually made me more determined. Having a career in the nightclub industry when people can hardly hear you was a challenge, but once you put yourself out there and overcome that initial fear it gives you more confidence. What I’m trying to say is don’t let your insecurities hold you back - it may seem daunting at first, but pushing yourself will just increase your confidence.
I’d say just go for it to anyone feeling a little shy about putting themselves out there - if you believe in yourself and have a passion about something then others will gravitate towards you. Never read the comments section, and always treat people how you’d like to be treated yourself.
Finally, your top tip for breaking into the sneaker industry? Be in it for the right reasons, if you have a genuine appreciation for sneaker design and storytelling then that will come across. It feels like there are a million resellers out there, so maybe avoid that and look at finding another way in.
Try working in retail, marketing, social media - anything that connects you to the brands you wish to work with. There are good people doing great things within the industry that keep pushing things forward, it’s always an exciting and evolving place.
