By John "Woods" Armwood III
The New York native, Natalie White, and her phenomenal team have left an imprint on women's sports that will last a lifetime. Born and raised in Manhattan, New York, it seems only natural that White fell accustomed to the game of basketball. She began playing sports at the age of five, in fact, her first word ever spoken was “ball”.
White was familiar with the game and had success at earlier levels, however, once she reached high school the game began to change a bit. She admits she had ample success in her freshman year of high school. Until many of the other girls began catching up to her in height and size. While this redirected her hooping career, she found the birth of the idea “Moolah Kicks” and is currently the top women’s basketball brand throughout 160 stores spread out around the country.
“John, it probably happened in high school, if I’m being honest,” she stated. “I wanted to focus on business and education and balanced that with my love for the game of basketball. Additionally, there are so many terrific ways that we can influence and make movement in women’s basketball off of the court, as well.”
Natalie White’s “Sh3GotGame” Moment
Initially, White felt confident in her idea of “Moolah Kicks”. However, like many, there are occasional doubts that tend to creep in. Naturally, White was so focused she didn’t allow these to play an effect on her vision for the company. Nonetheless, she begins to truly reflect and really think about her “Sh3GotGame” moment. She begins to go into great detail, explaining the time she did a Microsoft Ad. White explains all the details within the preparation and when it was time to begin the interview, the silence, and patience of everyone there waiting to hear her speak about the brand was unbelievable. Then, she knew “Moolah Kicks” was here to stay and would eventually continue to grow.
“The set of production had to cost nearly a million dollars, however, the attention to detail was admirable. They checked to make sure every follicle of my hair was laid a certain way, touched me up, and hooked me up with microphones. Eventually, when it was time to speak, you could hear a pin drop and it showed me the importance of what we’re building.”
Initially, the fight started with wanting gender equality, however, that eventually shifted into something completely different. Ironically, It became a vehicle of opportunity for women in basketball. The simple mindset change has helped elevate the company further than any ever imagined.
“We are Women’s basketball, we’re already legit,” White emphasized. “Equality implies legitimacy by how we stack up against Men’s basketball, but why even compare?”
“In fact, look at the unbelievable talent of this generation and how far we’ve come. We all should celebrate and champion Women’s basketball for what it is right now,” continued White.
Future Vision of “Moolah Kicks”
The lack of selections for women’s athletic basketball sneakers, ultimately, led to the origin of the brand. However, this taken into consideration, means these shoes are exclusive to women only. The science in which the shoe is made makes it only possible for women to wear the shoe. If men were to try to wear the shoe they would struggle because biologically speaking it’s impossible to implant a man’s food into a woman’s foot. While there are no future plans to make a unisex shoe there are plans going forward to increase, enhance and update the science of shoes to come.
However, by utilizing the shoes' exclusivity, White believes this will help only elevate the game. White referred to her experience as an entrepreneur as a roller coaster. Some of the biggest lessons she took away from the game, as well as, business is that nothing comes for free and everything is earned.
While lots of success stories come from trial and error and tons of losses before the big win. White has flipped her mindset relating to losses as failures. In fact, she often looks to these as just simply problems that need to be resolved.
“I don’t look at things as failure,” emphasized White. “I try to solve problems every day, in fact, I often get excited about the problems. It’s not feasible to run away from the problems so I face them head-on.”
What’s Next in 2022 for “Moolah Kicks”
On May 20th, “Moolah Kicks” is expected to be releasing a new shoe to the public. The new sneakers that will be dropping are called “Paint Shop Drop 2”. The new drop will include two indoor models, as well as, two outdoor models, and will be sold in over 160 Dicks Sporting Goods and online.
In conclusion, when asked if there’s any advice she’d like to offer to anyone out there that may resonate or follow your story closely, she responded:
“Always work hard for your passion. If you can’t find what you love, create it. If you truly love it, it’ll never feel like work.”