DeepSummary
The podcast episode takes the listener on a tour of Soleplay, a sneaker store in Atlanta with a bold mission to impact the local community beyond just selling shoes. The store's owner, TJ Bennett, aimed to use the power and appeal of sneaker culture to uplift urban and underserved neighborhoods. Inside the historic bank building housing Soleplay, visitors can find a vault displaying rare sneakers, as well as facilities for gaming, coding, and mental health discussions.
Bennett realized the potential for sneakers to drive positive change after seeing massive crowds turn out for a Travis Scott sneaker release. He partnered with local professors to create programs teaching kids about careers in gaming and esports, fields lacking diversity. Soleplay also hosts "Soul Circle" events focused on mental health, creating a safe space for open discussions that Bennett wished he had access to growing up.
The store goes beyond a typical retail experience, using sneakers as an entry point to provide valuable resources to the community. Bennett sees Soleplay as giving back in an impactful, generational way by nurturing skills, confidence, and wellbeing in local youth through fashion, technology, and vulnerability.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Soleplay is a sneaker store in Atlanta that aims to uplift underserved urban communities beyond just retail.
- Owner TJ Bennett recognized the influential power of sneaker culture and aimed to harness it as a catalyst for positive change.
- The store provides community programs focused on gaming/esports careers, coding, mental health discussions, and other resources.
- Bennett wants Soleplay to have a lasting, generational impact by nurturing skills and wellbeing in local youth.
- Soleplay uses the appeal of coveted sneaker releases to incentivize participation in its community programs.
- The historic bank building housing Soleplay has unique design elements like a vault displaying rare sneakers.
- Bennett partnered with local professors to develop diverse gaming/esports programs recognizing the industry's lack of representation.
- The "Soul Circle" events create a safe space for open mental health discussions that Bennett lacked growing up.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “So then I went back and just did a little research on the gaming industry, that the gaming industry was projected to be a 300 billion dollar industry by 2025. Then I said, okay, look, let's see how the diversity is in the gaming industry. Horrible. To date, it's only 4% of black people that are in the gaming industry working on a professional level. So I was like, all right, look, we have to close this gap, and I'm going to let my nephew know that he can be a gamer.“ by TJ Bennett
- “And then I look around, I'm like, you know what? These shoes can actually give us the power to impact these communities.“ by TJ Bennett
- “And once, you know, once they do that, then they can have the access to the shoes.“ by TJ Bennett
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Episode Information
Offsite Adventures
WaitWhat
4/24/24
Proving that heart plays a vital role in any story of success is the stylish Sole Play in Atlanta, a sneaker shop that is so much more than a sneaker shop. During a visit to the South’s cultural capital, Sole Play owner and entrepreneur Anthony “T.J.” Bennett gives Janet a tour of the shop’s iconic sneaker vault and explains how his business and its non-profit arm the Sole Circle Foundation combines fashion, gaming, and mental health into an unparalleled shopping experience. At Sole Play, an underserved community has a home. And so do weary travelers in need of a fresh look.
Offsite Adventures is a Masters of Scale Production presented in alliance with Capital One Business.
Special thanks to T.J. Bennett of Sole Play and Jakita Owensby Thomas and Erich Thomas of Pharoah’s Conclave.
See this story come to life in our video series on YouTube. Click here to watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMtgTBtOWYA
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