SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Dante Belissimo is the creative mind behind custom sneakers from different sporting teams and professional Sacramento Kings players featuring unique colors, patterns and designs.
The Northern California entrepreneur who fell in love with the thought of a “standout shoe,” wondered how he could make shoes like that on his own.
A video on a social media platform talking about the process of customizing shoes in 2018 turned out to be what he does as a full-time job in 2024.
“Summer after my senior year, kind of a summer project, I really just learned from YouTube. Bought my first pair of Vans, set up at my parent's kitchen table and painted my first pair,” said Belissimo. “It went pretty well and then it got me hooked.”
He grew up in Auburn, went to Santa Clara for college and then returned to start DJB Custom Shoes in his family's home rather than moving to a big city like Los Angeles or San Francisco. Sacramento was the place he wanted to be.
“I really love the people and I love the Sacramento community. From the time I have spent in the Bay, I feel like it already has its identity," said Belissimo. “Sacramento is still growing and still very much in its formation, so being able to be a part of that and help contribute, I think that's pretty rare.”
Belissimo showcased his marketing degree and custom shoe design expertise at his first job working at Trü Encompass Beauty below Punch Bowl Social in the Downtown Commons (DOCO).
“We had a partnership at the time with the Sacramento Kings and I had done a pair of shoes for the owner of the salon and she had them in display just in the entryway,” he said.
After almost two months of growing his brand, Belissimo was noticed by the Sacramento Kings' Senior Director of Entertainment who wanted him to customize shoes for an event through the Kings organization.
“It started with Sneakerhead night for the Kings. I did some custom Jordans for the Ranadivé family, and then Scott Freshour (Fresh) and Slamson, and then it was later in playoffs. I didn't even consider doing customs for a player,” said Belissimo.
After the event, he landed an opportunity to customize Domantas Sabonis and Malik Monk's Kobe 4 shoes.
“I was under the impression it was for a staff member or like a buddy of his, so I show up downtown and meet him out front. He had like a size 17. Sabonis was my first custom and I had never worked on a basketball shoe before,” said Belissimo. “It's a much different material.”
He was later recognized and announced by Boardroom in the 2022-2023 NBA season as the best customized Kobe 5 PE sneakers made for Malik Monk. Boardroom is a media company highlighting sports and entertainment run by Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman.
But it's no easy feat when it comes to designing custom shoes and upholding the value in the production. The preparation process can be different depending on the fabric of the shoe as well as making sure the paint on the shoe doesn't crack when customers wear it.
There's more to the customization process than just paint, including sanding down a shoe with 400-grit sandpaper, acetone, an adhesion promoter, a 2-soft fabric medium, sealant and acrylic paint.
“I try to make them as bulletproof as possible,” said Belissimo. “I like people to wear them stress-free, rather than not have to worry about the paint coming off.”
Customers customizing a shoe have free range when it comes to shoes. Brands like Air Force 1, Jordans, Vans, Adidas, Nike, Converse and New Balance are all shoes that can be used. Any color pattern and design can be done.
Payments are calculated by the shoe you pick and the labor of work. Depending on the design and shoe, sometimes labor can take up to 20 hours to be completed and could have a quick turnaround depending on the demand. Customers also get free touchups.
“I generally tell people a turnaround time of three to four weeks just to give myself time. So, like right now during the holiday season, it's pretty busy, so it's gonna be closer to that four-week mark,” said Belissimo.“Over summer when you're kind of in the off-season, I can turn it around in maybe a week, or a week and a half.”
The thought of turning Bellissimo's business into something bigger is something he's thought about throughout his career.
“It would be cool to have a brick-and-mortar store,” said Belissimo. “A whole studio setup where people can come in, maybe drop off their shoes and have them customized live. That would be pretty cool.”
Working out of his place in his own space has been comfortable for his company, though.
“I mean, my house looked like a Foot Locker, which is pretty funny,” said Belissimo.
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