Since TRONUS appeared out of nowhere and first brought their their luxury unisex athleisure sneakers to Eastbay.com, the Black woman-owned shoe company has been thriving.
TRONUS is a rule-breaking, fashionable, community-oriented brand that debuted in 2020 with a six-figure launch that caused their website to crash within hours of pre-orders going live. This attracted competitors and collaborators...during a global pandemic.
Perfect Timing and Match
Santia Deck, the brand's CEO and face, says, "We're all excited." Santia's mother, Cynthia Cureton-Robles, co-founded and runs TRONUS. The company culture encourages overachieving. Despite lacking ecommerce experience, these two Black women had the business, social media, and traditional marketing skills to launch a successful brand.
After achieving success as an athlete and fitness personality with a 2.5 million-strong social following, Santia endorsed a small independent shoe brand and envisioned her own signature line. Deck & Cureton-Robles decided to investigate Santia starting her own sneaker company when this ideal situation proved difficult. After months of R&D, test marketing, and audience analysis, Santia launched her own shoe.
TRONUS, the first female-owned shoe company, made history.
Champs Sports Homefield is thrilled to have TRONUS shoes because of their spirit and drive. Champs Sports values customer input. Guy Harkless, SVP and GM of Champs Sports and Eastbay, said, "We've been a part of athletes' lives since the beginning, and this new Homefield concept caters to their total needs." TRONUS will host a major in-store event at Champs Sports Homefield (TBA).
Champs Sports Homefield in Pembroke Pines, Florida is the largest Foot Locker, Inc. subsidiary in the world at 35,000 square feet. It caters to changing consumer needs, and TRONUS has always prioritized data and customer input. TRONUS' online business model is successful, even though their shoes are better in person.
Cureton-Robles says, "When people feel how light our shoes are and try them on, we gain a new super-fan."
TRONUS looks to replicate its online success in offline retail. The old guard should recognize TRONUS as a rising force soon.
