Biography
Born in Oregon, United States on April 30 1952, Tinker Haven Hatfield is one of the great, memorable and innovative sport shoe designers of all time. Growing up in a small town, society gave him two solid work options which were farm/field work or sport; however little did society know that his future had something very different in store, one that would make a lasting impact on the design industry. His mother, brother, and father were all sports coaches. His father in particularly, Tinker Hatfield Sr was very well regarded as a coach in Oregon, giving Hatfield Jr an upbringing surrounded by sports. This was evident in high school where he attended Central Linn High School, he became an all-state selection for basketball, football and All-American selection for track & field. Tinker went on to study at the University of Oregon, graduating with a Bachelor of Architecture degree and running track for Nike's co-owner Bill Bowerman.
It was in 1981 when he joined the Nike corporate team, yet only discovered the positive transfer between his architectural skills and shoe design in 1985. The Nike company was shrinking due to the products lacking aesthetic appeal and innovative technology. Hatfield was asked to compete in a 24 hour shoe design contest which he won by a mile. Nike told him, "You are now a designer, forget that architecture stuff." It was then when he began designing sports shoes and soon enough the Jordan 3s, one of the most sought after Jordan shoes. In 1988 Michael Jordan was unhappy with Nike and looking to sign with Nike's greatest rival, Adidas. This is where Hatfield first made his mark, he collaborated with Michael Jordan - merging their ideas for elephant print and a visible air unit - creating the Jordan 3. His contribution to the Nike team, in turn strengthened Jordan's relationship with Nike and allowed sport’s most iconic range to continue. If it wasn’t for Hatfield’s Jordan 3s, there is a great chance that Michael Jordan would have made the switch to Adidas. If this were to happen, the brand we know to be the most successful in the world, (Nike) could have been chasing the tail of Adidas. However today, in almost every sport, sport companies are behind Nike in popularity and innovation due to the great image Nike built, starting with Tinker and Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan went on to become the greatest basketball player of all time with six championship rings and Hatfield continued to design his shoes even through Jordan's premature retirement.
Over the years Tinker Hatfield has shown a great amount of empathy and capacity to critically analyse an athlete's needs, in terms of their footwear. He constantly refers to his designs as a means to tell a story. Products such as the Nike Air Tech Challenger and Jordan XIII were birthed as a result of this.
During Jordan's premature retirement, Hatfield continued to design shoes for him despite the critics who thought he was crazy. He believed he knew his client well enough to know he would make a return to basketball and therefore produced the Jordan XI, the most popular Jordan of all time. A tremendous amount of hype was built up to the release, with people breaking into stores and fighting each other to get their hands on a pair. It was an unusual design at the time that pushed the aesthetic limitations that retailers placed on a basketball shoe, with the shiny leather being something you would find on a women's shoe. This innovation set a solid foundation for opportunistic streetwear.
However Tinker Hatfield's success extends outside of Jordan. During the 80s it was normal to bring two pairs of shoes to the gym, one for running and the other for weightlifting. However, this was arduous and undesirable for most individuals, leaving them to pick between the two pairs. Furthermore Hatfield designed the Nike air Tech Challenge, a shoe that combined the stability and support of a weightlifting shoe with the freedom and flexibility of a runner. He had designed this versatile prototype when John McEnroe was returning to tennis and demanding to see some new shoes. McEnroe fell in love with Hatfield's prototype, choosing to train in them and refusing to return them. He was asked to not wear them at the Grand Slam, however, ignored Nike – fortunately winning the Slam.
The popular movie series Back to the Future, asked Nike to design a futuristic shoe that would be worn by the character Marty McFly. Hatfield was placed on the project where he was able to envision what that may look like. In the movie special effects gave the shoes the ability to self-lace. In 2016 Hatfield made that a reality as a consequence of his resilience and perseverance, delivering the first pair of Air Mag's to Michael J Fox with a letter. The letter explained that they had created more of the Nike Air Mags to aid the Michael J Fox foundation - helping put an end to Parkinson’s disease by aiming to raise more than 9.4 million dollars.
Tinker Hatfield, despite his old age continues to design and is now the Vice President of the Innovation Kitchen and of Design and Special Projects at Nike. He constantly looks to gain inspiration from different perspectives and personal experiences in order to improve his designs. Hatfield's designs have become much more than athletic shoes, but shoes that tell stories, embrace culture and facilitate the dreams of the youth. His designs are quintessential street wear, worn and recognised by the multitudes. Today Air Jordan's and Nike's SB designs are some of the most prevalent shoes on the street, as a result of Hatfield pioneering the skate genre at Nike and enhancing the basketball world. His influence is clearly evident in the Hip Hop industry as songs have been written about his designs with 'Jumpman' by Drake and 'Wings' by Macklemore. He has been monumental in Nike’s and Air Jordan’s success and if it weren’t for his innovations and constant improvements in which he credits to experience, athletic shoes and street wear could look very unfamiliar.