If you've been collecting sneakers and have a passion for some of your favorite Nike, Gucci, Lanvin's etc that are deconstructed, reconstructed and customized with premium and exotic skins, Dominic Ciambrone, a.k.a. The Surgeon is the legendary creative mind that is at the forefront of taking our sneaker game to the next level! His work has been coveted and collected by Justin Bieber, LeBron James, Odell Beckham Jr, DJ Khaled, Canelo, and more. In addition he has worked with Bentley Motors, NBA, NFL, Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors, Heineken, Reese's, Glenmorangie, 7-11, and a number of other brands. We wanted to find out how he got into and pioneered this space, what his work entails, his projects, working with luxury brands, SRGN Studios, SRGN Academy, his passion for sports, The League, and additional projects that he is working on.
ATHLEISURE MAG: When did you realize that you wanted to be a shoemaker?
DOMINIC CIAMBRONE: When did I realize that I wanted to be a shoemaker? I would say when I was 19 years old. From the age of 15/16, I was painting shoes, but I realized that to actually be a shoemaker, I needed to take my craft a step further. That realization came I think when I met one of my mentors, Michael Anthony who hand makes western boots.
AM: What was that journey like to be able to be self-taught and learning all of those elements?
DC: It was a long road! I started with painting shoes and then I learned how to sew on top of them – I learned sewing in high school. Then I met my mentor who made western boots so I got to watch him make boots and then I realized that that’s what I wanted to do with sneakers. I wanted to make the highest end sneakers in the world and it took many years working for free and just doing stuff to learn about machines and tools. It was a lot of missteps and a lot of learning. I did paint, I did shoe repair, fixed purses and bags. I mean, I did all kinds of things just so that I could learn.
AM: Back in 2011/2012, I had a collaboration with Sebago and I had a line of their boat shoes and we sold it on HSN, Bloomingdale's and a few select retailers and I was so excited. But my background at that time was in apparel and jewelry as opposed to shoes. I remember reading an article about you and your work when I was on my flight heading to the factory in the Dominican Republic. After reading it, I felt that in hearing your story, how you approached your work etc, that if I could take that same approach and focus on the materials and create another way to highlight this style of shoe much as you do with sneakers that I could do it! So reading about you and just thinking about it in a different way saved me from freaking out on my flight I just wanted to say thank you for that!
DC: That’s awesome!
AM: Why do you call yourself The Surgeon?
DC: I was 18 years old in a hotel in NYC for the first time trying to figure out what to call myself, the brand, and what I was doing. I just wrote down a bunch of things and I was just trying to figure out what do I do to sneakers? What do I do to the shoes? I was like, “surgery,” and that’s where it got birthed – The Surgeon. Now that we're expanding the business, we've taken "Shoe" out of the name and go by SURGEON. Our creativity isn't limited to sneakers and you're going to see that more and more next year.
AM: When you’re customizing shoes, where do you start in that creative process when you’re making sneakers?
DC: I mean it changes. I don’t have one set process. For me, I have always been able to build something to life straight from an idea. I love sourcing materials, I’m really big into materials, I think that I’m mostly a materials person. I mostly just love it so much. You can turn something into a product and that’s a beautiful thing.
AM: I’m also a fashion stylist and an accessory expert, so I’m constantly talking about and believe that when someone is purchasing a handbag, jewelry, or shoes, you’re buying what the designer intended in making that item as well as what the wearer puts into it after wearing it and wanting it. Ultimately, that connection between the person who purchased it and the product creates its own history and meaning. When people are buying your shoes, what are they getting?
DC: I mean, ha – they get a piece of my soul. They get a piece of something that’s my entire life and they get a piece of shoemaking history that dates back all the way to Ancient Egypt! I mean, there’s those hieroglyphics on the wall that I looked at recently and some of the oldest ones have people making shoes!
AM: You have been worn and collected by so many people from LeBron James, Justin Bieber, Drake and more. What’s it like when you’re collaborating with them on specific ideas and incorporating your concepts together?
DC: Sometimes they give me the full range to do what I want and then there’s some that have a couple of ideas and I help bring their ideas to life where they will give a little bit of direction and I’m able to go back and forth. I think that a true collaboration is a very beautiful thing. You have 2 energies that are coming together to create something magical.
AM: You’ve also worked with so many brands whether it’s Gucci or Lanvin or Nike or Reese’s, what does it feel like to be able to work with these types of brands and to bring your creativity and artistry into what their lexicon is?
DC: I mean, it’s a beautiful thing. At the end of the day, I just – a friend of mine told me that I’m making commercial cool right? So a lot of the stuff that I get to do is that I get to make cool commercials and I didn’t look at it that way. People just reached out to me for my craft and my artistry and what I have been able to build from my Instagram to just a true foundation where I hold a high value on my quality and my artisanal work with the team so it’s really cool to be able to be part of it.
AM: You’re SURGEON X Bentley partnership last year where you had the limited edition shoes as well as Surgeon-ifying their car, what did it mean to you to work with this brand and to create in this way?
DC: Bentley is one of, if not the most, prestigious car company in the world. So, to be able to fly to Crewe, England and sit with the makers there and to see how they produced one of the highest quality cars in the world was a very humbling experience and it was so amazing to be able to do that because that car is the top of the top!
AM: Oh yeah!
The materials that you use – the leathers, the exotics are amazing. Have you also used sustainable materials like banana leathers, mycelium and things like that?
DC: Oh yeah, I’ve been using different ideas of sustainability whether it’s even recycled materials. I actually flew to Brazil, developed an Elephant Ear plant material and we have used that on shoes and right now, I have a shoe that is launching that the sole is dyed with turmeric, the swoosh is mushroom, pineapple leather, grape leaf leather – I mean, it’s a really cool shoe.
AM: What has been your favorite project that you have worked on?
DC: I don’t really have favorites …
AM: You’re like me – I don’t have favorites, but there are a lot of things that I vibe with!
DC: I think it’s myself – really working on myself is beauty and I never looked at it that way until recently. So to be able to work on myself and to be able to translate that to my children, the work will speak for itself. myself is beauty and I never looked at it that way until recently. So to be able to work on myself and to be able to translate that to my children, the work will speak for itself.
AM: When you started, this industry and the market didn’t really exist in this way and you definitely have left a mark on it. Where do you see the industry in the next 15/20 years?
DC: That’s a great question. I don’t know. I don’t think like that because shoes and the custom industry was something that I think that I really helped pioneer and now for me, it’s way bigger than that. I’m working on architecture, interiors, car design, and so many other things. So just for custom shoes as an industry, I think that more people will respect the process more. I think that some will try it and most won’t like it because it’s a lot of work. I do think that a lot of things will be going to automation and easy to do things.
AM: Tell me about SRGN Academy which you have in LA, Las Vegas and at the Seaport here in NY.
DC: The SRGN Academy was started 8 or 9 years ago now. Growing up, I didn’t have a class or a school that I wanted to go to so I wanted to offer a trade school that you learn how to make a pair of shoes from scratch and at the same time, it’s not just about the shoes. It’s about going through something for yourself and doing something positive for yourself.
AM: Then there’s SRGN Studios, why did you want to launch this and what does it entail?
DC: SRGN Studios and even SURGEON Worldwide, is just a company that I have been able to build. The studio is like my fantasy factory where we have sports and all things under one roof. Not until you’re able to come into the studio do you really get a feel for it. You can only see so much through social media and online. So it's just a way for people to be able to have fun and live life. Life’s too short. I wanted to create a safe and fun place for people.
AM: Tell me about The League.
DC: The League started out of – well my business partner Dallas Imbimbo, he plays basketball and I play soccer. So once we got into our newer space, we just started playing pickup games and then we were like, “oh, let’s do more.” So we turned it into a league and it’s been very competitive, and fun, and a great outlet for me to not just be creative – but athletic and to compete in a healthy way.
AM: It seems like you have a full schedule. Will you ever have versions where you go to other cities like here in NY or in Miami.
DC: Yeah, we’re working on it.
AM: A few minutes ago, you were talking about how your passion extends beyond just shoes as you’re working in architecture, interiors, and cars. Will you have a clothing line, will we ever see a hotel that you do?
DC: Yeah exactly! I’m working on all of those things. I think that the hotel is definitely something that I love. I’m passionate about traveling and experience is something that is very meaningful to me so a hotel is definitely ideating.
AM: Here at Athleisure Mag, we love talking about food, it’s a great love that we’re constantly covering. You have the Canevari’s Ravioli Factory & Delicatessen – tell us more about this.
DC: My dad took over this deli 12-15 years ago and growing up my whole life, my dad was a chef. My mom cooked and my dad, when I was going into my freshman year of high school, they opened a restaurant and I got to see them live out their passions by just opening up a restaurant. At the time, I took it for granted and I didn’t understand it. I thought that it was normal and it was just my normal. Now that they have the deli, I have helped them remodel it, help brand it, and to get the right eyeballs on it to continue to grow it. It’s helped my dad and I to become closer.
“They get a piece of my soul. They get a piece of something that’s my entire life and they get a piece of shoemaking history that dates back all the way to Ancient Egypt! I mean, there’s those hieroglyphics on the wall that I looked at recently and some of the oldest ones have people making shoes!”
AM: What do you do in terms of working out as we like to know. So what are 3 workouts that you do that we should consider to add into our routines?
DC: Play soccer! Play soccer! It’s such a good workout. I mean and then, steam room, sauna, and I also meditate which is a workout for the mind to relax and physical therapy. I think a lot of people don’t realize how important physical therapy is. We wait until we’re hurt or we need to recover to get to it. But it’s like, if you can be preventative, then you’ll always be good. Mobility workouts are great. It’s less about weight and going crazy, it’s about the body and being really kind to your body and figuring out how to open it up so that you can have it for the longevity of your life.
AM: Totally agree. I turned 40 a few years ago and prior to that I wasn’t as focused on recovering the body post workout and mobility. When I started adding it in, I wondered why I had never done that because your body needs it and you can feel it over time.
When you’re not working, how do you take time for yourself?
DC: How do I take time for myself? I have a life coach that I work with every week. You know, I would say that playing soccer is time for myself even though it is in the studio. It’s really the only time that I ever shut off unless I’m in a meditation or workout. Hiking, traveling, and then working on myself for my children.
AM: Are there any upcoming projects that you would like to share?
DC: Ha! I’d have to ask my team! I can’t even keep up. We’re moving into the new studio, another 20,000 sq ft. We have a collaboration with Allen Iverson that launches next month. I mean, there are so many, I can’t even keep up anymore.
AM: You have so many projects going on and dropping. When a project comes to your attention, how do you decide if that is something that you want to add to your schedule?
DC: We have built such a great team to help manage this stuff so that we can continue to grow and that for me as a creative, I can continue to explore new things. So, it just depends. There are so many great things that we’re working on and a lot of the things that I’m working on is the stuff for the future.
AM: You’re also an advocate and you speak about the importance of mental health which is something we believe in. Why is it so important to you and what do you feel is the connection between mental health and physical health?
DC: As a kid, I went through a lot of mental health challenges, and I don’t think that I knew of it that way. At 24, I ended up jumping out of a window when I was making shoes for Justin Bieber, and I was diagnosed bipolar and I didn’t really know what that meant. Then when I started doing more self-research and figuring more things out, it’s so important – mental health and physical health are one in the same and you need to do both. When you take care of your physical health, your mental health will be better. It’s just true in the same and so it’s very important to physically take care of yourself for your mental purposes and with mindful workouts which is meditation, positive self-talk, it's mindfulness and so many things. And yeah, there’s so many people with how the world is going where people are pushing you know, different types of medicines. There’s something so much more easier about being able to get up and going for a walk, being in the sun, and taking care of your mind, body, and soul.
AM: I heard you like to rap in the office!
DC: HAHA I like to make people laugh! Growing up, my dad always rhymed, more like Dr. Seuss than a rapper, but I do it for myself and also to help people around to laugh. My kids pick it up to and it’s so funny because if I try to start rhyming and rapping, my daughter’s like, “dad, stop!”
AM: I could see you dropping a mix tape!
DC: I mean, I’m working on music more for exploring it. It’s less about rapping and more about just creating!
IG @ciambrone
PHOTO CREDITS | FRONT/BACK COVER, PG 20 + 9DRIP 42-45 Bryam Heredia/SRGN Studios + Grooming/Stefanie Guerra | PG 16-19, 22-41 SRGN Studios |
Read the NOV ISSUE #95 of Athleisure Mag and see THE ARTISAN | Dominic Ciambrone “The Surgeon” in mag.
