GourmetKickz® was born when Chef Spar decided to turn a hobby into a business in 2002. After collecting and reselling sneakers as a past time, and generating both a following and a clientele, Chef decided to kick things up a notch and play to his business name by actually cooking up custom artwork on kicks. After a trial run on a pair of Dunk Lows which sold for over $300 once Chef cooked them into the “Beef and Broccolis”, it was decided that custom sneaker creation would be a focus. Chef then climbed the ranks and became well known as a top tier collector and customizer.
GourmetKickz® Food for the Sole™
All About The Brand And The Creative Mind Behind It
GourmetKickz® Food for the Sole™ is a lifestyle brand that speaks from the perspective of the sneakerhead with good taste. As such the catalog of offerings from GourmetKickz® are top notch, creative, stand out pieces of wearable art. All custom sneakers offered under the GourmetKickz® brand are hand crafted by one man, Chef. GourmetKickz® also currently offers t-shirts; cotton graphic tees and polyester all over print tees.
How it all started
Brand Approach
GourmetKickz® approach to custom sneakers is all about presentation and is meant to mimic the experience one might have at a 5 Star Restaurant. The head Chef creates dishes for his clientele. He creates dishes that cater to an audience with a refunded palate. The Chef does not take requests for specific dishes, but rather takes suggestions and creates his own masterpieces. And just as a 5 Star Restaurant would present its famous dishes with amazing detail and style, Chef of GourmetKickz® presents his masterpieces in a manner that attracts attention and elevates custom sneakers to the realm of fine art. His packaging and attention to detail put his dishes over the top and into a class all their own.
FROM BEGINNING TO PRESENT, CHEF'S EVOLUTION AS AN ARTIST
Some GourmetKickz® History
Custom Dunks
Before there was social media, before internet selling platforms were a popular space to buy and sell sneakers, Chef of GourmetKickz was painting his very first pair of sneakers…. a pair of Nike Dunk Lows. He crafted these in a “beef and broccoli” theme. The kicks had a beautifully balanced colorway with a hand painted pattern that mimicked the texture of broccoli. The packaging was actually next level for the time. A custom box that was wrapped in Chinese Take-Out menus, highlighting the Beef n Broccoli offering on each. The left and right tongue tags of the sneakers said “Eat My Beef” and “Eat Your Veggies” respectively. These customs sold for nearly $500 on eBay and marked the very start of GourmetKickz®.
GourmetKickz® actually designed The DeCreaseR™ using the Nike Dunk Low as a testing platform for the DeCreaseR™ comfort and effectiveness.
Custom Air Force Ones
Shortly after GourmetKickz® Food for the Sole™ offered custom Dunks, Chef began specializing in the more popular Nike Air Force Ones. Chef’s love of the AF1 aka the Nike Air Force One brought him to amass a sizable collection of limited and exclusives making the pivot to hand crafting custom forces pretty seamless. Due to his intimate appreciation for the shoe, his vast award winning collection, and his catalog of customized Air Forces, Chef is also known as the AF1 King
GourmetKickz® also offers some of the best sneaker colorway matching apparel on the internet that no sneakerhead’s wardrobe should be without!
Custom Jordans
Funny enough, until 2014 GourmetKickz® had never customized a Nike Air Jordan sneaker. However now, after several requests from customers, GourmetKickz® now offers some of the most amazing custom jordans on the internet. Some of his customs are so amazing in detail you would think they were PEs. Chef of GourmetKickz® consistently pushes the envelope when it comes to mixing textiles and painted textures, making him one of the best custom sneaker artists to ever do it. As mentioned before be sure to check out these original GourmetKickz® Custom Copper Patina Jordan 1’s which showcase his attention to detail.
Shop GourmetKickz® Sneaker Colorway Matching Apparel for colorways and textures that compliment these customs.
Custom Foamposites & More
In 2016 GourmetKickz® was crowned by SoleCollector magazine as the World’s Best Custom Nike Foamposite Sneaker Artist. GourmetKickz® is also known to have some of the best customized LeBrons, custom painted KDs and custom galaxy Zoom Rookies in the world. Chef of GourmetKickz® was consistently ranked one of the best custom sneaker artists for several years in a row by the major sneaker blogs and news sources. He continues to push the envelope by straying from conventional painting methods. With a focus on textiles, textures, and color harmonies Chef’s creation stand out from the crowd.
Be sure to check out the amazing Sneaker Colorway Matching Apparel offered by GourmetKickz®.
Deadstock Exclusives
During the same time the brand began customizing sneakers, it also started offering deadstock exclusive sneakers for resale online. GourmetKickz has made it a point to continually offer both custom sneakers from and rare deadstock sneakers whenever possible. To keep up to date on what deadstock Nike sneakers or other brands of exclusive kicks available, please click on the Deadstock Exclusives portion of the menu. Since Chef of GourmetKickz has over 500 pair of deadstock Rare Nike Air Force 1s that you can find on the AF1King website.
