South African musician and entrepreneur Cassper Nyovest has revealed his first sneaker with Drip Footwear.
In June this year, the “Siyathandana” hitmaker partnered with the local footwear brand owned by Lekau Sehoana on what they call the “Legacy Deal.”
To celebrate the one-month partnership, the two entrepreneurs unveiled their first sneaker together, ’The Roof Of Fame 990,’ at a conference hosted on July 8.
Not only did they release the sneaker, but they also put a 240-metre square banner at The Leonardo, the tallest building in Africa, where they signed the Legacy Deal.
About the inspiration behind the name, Nyovest said: “At the beginning of lockdown, I found myself at home, feeling useless as I was stuck in my house and I was in the weirdest place. I used to be celebrated everywhere I go and get paid to just show up at venues. Now I'm stuck in my house with no fans, just family.
“My fame didn’t matter for the first time in my life it was useless. I then asked myself how I can package this fame and sell it. I had to make a product that not only is associated with my name but gives people a taste of how it feels to be me. I had to dig deep into the roots, hence the name ‘The Root Of Fame’”.
Sehoana said that the journey of Drip Footwear is a journey of persistence, considering all the hardships he had to go through to create a successful brand.
“When I created Drip in 2019, it wasn’t just a 2019 story. It was a story that started way back in 2003. It took us at least 16 years to build that business in 2019. In 2003 growing up in Ivory Park informal settlements called Mafelandawonye, our teacher told us to come wearing our home clothes. And I didn’t have any clothes to wear. I was in Grade 8, and being in a big school other kids wore labels, and I didn’t have anything.
“So I just went home, and I saw an old torn sneaker because my grandmother taught me how to sew. And then I redesigned that sneaker using denim. I also created my outfit and went to school. That was one of the coolest things to ever happen at Eqinisweni Secondary School. I spent my five years of high school making clothes and redesigning sneakers, so it was more of a recycling project for me,” said Sehoana.
After repeating matric in 2008, he tried other businesses, but they all failed. In 2019, he then launched Drip Footwear with 26 pairs of sneakers. Today, Sehoana owns at least seven Drip Footwear stores nationwide.