For most footwear brands, the design process is highly confidential. Over the last few months, Timberland has welcomed sneakerheads into the design studio to create a new collection as a community. Earlier this week, the first releases of fan-built boots debuted on Betabrand’s crowdsourcing and crowdfunding platform. Creative customers invested themselves in the entire design process—from sketch to fabrication to a crowdfundable prototype—narrowing around 30 designs down to three.
”Partnering with Betabrand allows Timberland to engage consumers in a dialogue in a truly innovative way and test new design concepts in real-time, from infancy through to creation,” offers Jay Steere, senior director Timberland innovation lead. “Timberland is the largest lifestyle brand we’ve ever collaborated with,” adds Betabrand CEO Chris Lindland. ”And we’re excited about the impact our crowdsourced design process can have on their footwear.”
