Former Jordan Executive Drops ‘Code’ A Fresh Footwear Line For Young Fly Professionals

Gentry Humphrey, who has been working in the footwear industry for Nike and Brand Jordan for more than 32 years, has launched his very own footwear brand, Code, targeting young professionals.

“The goal of Code is to make sure that we provide footwear 24/7 for our consumer,” the semi-retired executive told Footwear News.

Although he “retired” from the Jordan Brand in 2021 at the behest of basketball legend Michael Jordan, he is still running Jordan Golf through his consulting firm.

Code’s target audience is individuals between 23 to 38 years old who live in urban cities such as New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Tokyo, and Seoul. They are career-driven professionals who may be a sports enthusiast, maybe even a former athlete.

“These young millennials, sneaker culture is all they know,” Humphrey said. “But what I found talking to consumers is that as they are entering the state of their life where they have to be young professionals. I felt like there was great opportunity in being able to keep the essence of the world that they’re familiar with but give them something elevated. This allows them to still feel comfortable and they don’t have to wear footwear that looks like their dad’s footwear.”

The first shoes are slated to debut this summer. Customers can buy directly from the Code website. In the future, there is a possibility of Code having a presence in some select brick-and-mortar doors.

Code will debut with three styles:

• All Day will have a price tag between $100 and $135.
• Executive will range in price from $135 to $160.
• Entrepreneur will have a price tag ranging from $160 to $200.

Humphrey also said the shoe brand is also looking for collaborations with young people who desire to work in the footwear industry. Los Angeles-based school Inner-City Arts has been tapped to assist in finding those individuals.