Footwear Mogul Talks About His Life And The Billion Dollar Investment In Athletic Shoe Industry.

Born Mosi-Runako Jones, now known as Mosimo Jones, sat down for an exclusive interview to discuss his life, ambitions for Pharaoh Athletics and why he feels his two Companies will change the apparel and footwear industry. We get to take an inside look of a man who lives a somewhat reclusive lifestyle and wants to change the world with footwear and apparel.

Question: Who are you?

Ans: I'm an artist, inventor, and founder of Pharaoh Athletics Inc. I originally created the Company after I received a patent for athletic shoes back in 2012. I wrote a business plan and realized that there was an opportunity for a niche market for custom footwear for athletes. Each year, football injuries were rising in the U.S. even though football cleats were made with the best materials and technology by the best Companies. Yet, lower extremity injuries rated number one in football for athletes sitting on the sideline, which resulted into hundreds of millions of dollars lost. 

Question: What did you receive a patent for? 

Ans: The invention is a motion-controlled footwear device. It's designed to reduce the amount of energy directed towards joints and ligaments while walking, jogging or running. Imagine having a supercar with no breaks, that would be crazy right! Like cars, athletes use cleats as breaks to slow them down without getting injured in the process. Unlike cars, humans have joints and ligaments that can twist and turn while in motion which are prone to serious injuries without the proper footwear. 

Question: What makes your Company better or different from the competition presently dominating athletic footwear industry?

 Ans: Our football cleats contain an inflated heel and a rotating foot sole at the front of the shoe. The inflated heel helps with stability and comfort. The 3d symmetry design will exert energy to propel the athlete forward. The foot sole can rotate 360 degrees which allows athletes better motion when performing stop and go turns. Training drills highlight the benefits of our footwear tech by allowing the user to rotate the cleat and get out of the drills far more efficiently. The combination of the heel and foot sole work together to create a far superior option for athletes. 

Question: Is there any particular reason why you waited until now to open up when your sort of a reclusive person who rarely talks to media?

Ans: Yes, of course. I've been working on this Company for almost ten years and what I've learned is timing is everything. During my journey, I thought it would be easy to get investors, family, and friends to understand my vision for Pharaoh Athletics but that was not the case it was the total opposite, which was a shock for me! Within that time, I learned that even though I felt I had a great product, I had no money for marketing, and I lacked the PR skills to get Pharaoh Athletics out their so people could understand what we were about.  Second, the technology for manufacturing needed to catch up for 3d printing our products. Third, I noticed that their were a lot of copy cats coming into competition with a product I created back in 2013. 

Question: So, are you saying that other Companies copied your footwear technology, isn't that considered patent infringement?

Ans:  A lot what I've seen have similar attributes and not an outright copy. What you will notice is brands using a rounded heel design with a gap in the middle ( bridge shape), angling back down into the front sole. I predicted that performance footwear would put the user more on their toes, and having a carbon fiber plate in 2013. Ten years later, Brands are using this technology to win sprints to marathons. I've also approached investors about our tech so I'm not surprised if Companies decided to copy aesthetics of the design. I can't say the names but I believe these Companies strategize using connections to slow our growth in the industry tech and share it amongst themselves all the while attempting to use a smear campaign to destroy my reputation. You have to understand, I'm talking about creating an invention that could have big benefits in the athletic footwear industry. Including manufacturing which is a multi-billion dollar industry. And, if the tech we created turns out to be true in such a small swimming pool of Companies people decide not to share. 

Question: Wow! Those are some serious claims you're stating. I hope what your'e saying isn't true, and I hope your company gets the credit it deserves. How are you able to defend the accusations about you, and protect your footwear tech. 

Ans: Coming from a small town, people do not fact check anything. If someone tells them not to hire or be affiliated with a particular person then they follow.  Since 2013, I believe there was definitely a smear campaign initiated to try to destroy my reputation. It also lead to the slow progress of growing the business with a lack of financial backing.  First and foremost, I am not a criminal and I do not engage in criminal activities. Yet, finding a job with my credentials was no different then someone getting out of prison. I went from walking to jogging, then it was like someone broke my legs. As a result in 2019, I became homeless because I couldn't find a job so I decided to create a clothing company during the pandemic. Ask yourself, who wins? I'm not winning staying in my hometown by a long shot. So, when people look at me and wonder why it's taken me so long to get investors involved it's because I refuse to sellout and I'm dealing with more problems than what's on the surface.

Instead of focusing on building a Company, I have to worry about finding money to put a roof over my head. I believe this was the conspirators plan all along to make sure I was not able to provide for myself so that I would be forced to get involved with some type criminal activity or implode on myself. Left with no other options I had to make drastic decisions to continue ways to build the Company! I almost got to a point where I wanted to end it all. Not for the reasons people think, I felt that my lively-hood was taken away from me which was one of the most humiliating situations I ever been through in my life. While my friends, and family are enjoying life with loved ones. I was stuck in survival mode with those same friends and family talking about me as if I was crazy. With that said, I lost a lot of friends and family. 

Questions: So, how did you overcome those obstacles that were set for you to basically destroy yourself?

Ans: Build, learn, and educate myself. As a Black man, I realized that it's ten times harder to come up out of poverty then it is for any other race of people. Especially, when you follow your own path in life. There's more racism in these smaller towns than most people may think because it's insulated in the fabric of the counties judicial system. While my name was being crucified in my community, I decided to build my Company. I'm not trying to say that I'm a saint, because I'm not. Luckily, I was able to learn from my child-hood to forgive myself and make decisions to change my life. l slaved for minimum wage jobs in my twenties to stay out of trouble and educate myself. Becoming an entrepreneur gave me the energy to build Pharaoh Athletics in my thirties. I also use my platform to educate people about the traps in our community that are set for us to fail. 

Question: I'm sorry for the racism you experienced in your city.  However, are you making any progress to educate future entrepreneurs and build your Company?

Ans: Yes, Earlier this year I wrote a book to educate people on the footwear technology. The Book is called Faster, Stronger, Higher, and it's now available on Amazon. I wanted to showcase information on my platform so that future entrepreneurs could see the obstacles I had to face building my Company. Also, we received a grant that helped to provide needed marketing, and PR. Every year, I donate to charities that support Black entrepreneurship such as the NBMBAA (National Black MBA Association) and NASE ( National Association for the Self-Employed).

Question: Who or what inspires you?

Ans: I'll use Nikola Tesla as an inspiration example. Nikola Tesla was a very passionate man as an engineer but he lacked the people skills to be a savvy businessman compared to his counter-part. Which, ultimately lead to a genius dying broke, and not being recognized for his achievements until years after his death. This man literally changed the world that we live in today with his inventions. Yet, in the present time Nikola Tesla's name will be known for making electric cars by a Company called Tesla Motors. The moral for me was, if America could treat Nikola Tesla like he was worthless, than who am I? No one cares if you have a better mouse trap as long as you get to the finish line first. I understand Nikola Tesla now more so than ever when you have the ability to change peoples lives from your creativity and it falls on deaf ears, it's not a coincidence. After Nikola's death, I heard that the military stole all his documents, which I can't confirm. The point is, there is always an agenda when a gang of unknown people try everything in their power to silence a person. They want the people to believe there's always a reason to destroy great or misunderstood people. You don't have to destroy people to steal their ideas or inventions when in todays cancel culture you can ostracize them from society. For Nikola, the irony is that I couldn't imagine living in a world without Nikola's inventions, it would definitely be a lot darker. 

Question: What strategies have you used to market your company because a lot of the things your'e doing are not traditional, like getting involved with NFT's?

Ans: Yes, NFT's are the future of the Metaverse world. I launched a couple of NFT's on Rarible  earlier this year. After Mark Zuckerburgs  speech about the Metaverse I realized that NFT's could revolutionize Black entrepreneurs lack of support for investment opportunities, especially for Black men. NFT's are fairly new but for me, it's no different than a barcode on a product, accept that the barcode is limited to the company that manufactured or sold it. NFT barcodes (Non-Fungible Tokens) can be traced back to the original source of creation, and for future transactions. For example, a rapper could create a song specifically as an NFT, sell it keeping 100% profit, and get a lifetime royalty for every time that song is sold. Forget the middle-men that's game changing! If I was a rapper, I would release an entire album as an NFT.  So, to answer your question, we are definitely working on some future projects in the NFT space coming soon. 

Question: What will it take for your Company to get to the next level? 

Ans: With the launch of Pharoh Athletics and Pharoh Clothing in 2020, my goal is to reach 200k in sales revenue for 2022. Also, we plan to release 96 NFT's coming soon with footwear NFT's connected to real shoes as a gift. We also plan to collaborate with college and professional athletes, social media influencers, and to help promote our products and footwear tech. The ultimate goal is to release a limited supply of football and soccer shoes by the end of 2022 for athletes. My goal has always been to provide athletes with better options in sports. I'm not trying to take over the footwear industry and destroy the competition. I believe there's room for footwear startups to be a prime player in the industry on a much smaller scale. In soccer, smaller shoe manufacturers have been able to thrive compared to larger and more powerful brand names. I think in America we compare Companies that receive these billion dollar acquisitions over night as expectations for success. Sometimes, success is about creating a great product that people know is a great. 

Question: What has been the biggest obstacle you've faced since starting the Company?

Ans: I've faced rejection after rejection that made me want to quit. However, the most difficult challenge was overcoming stereotypes. We live in a society where they want you to look, act, or be affiliated with this group or that organization. They want you to be married and have a few kids. You have to have the car, and the house so people can't see you struggling. And all of this is a lie, so that you can end up more in debt trying to keep up with the Jones's. I want to get married, have kids, and own a mansion one day. The reality is, all of those decisions come with responsibilities. If you want to become an entrepreneur sacrifices have to be made personally and financially. Sometimes, I have to check myself. How bad do I really want it? If living a modest life, and being labeled as a recluse so that I can live chasing my dreams, then it was worth it. I don't live for money, I live for the experience.  

Question: What inspired you to create two apparel companies?

Ans: Streetwear culture has always been apart of me growing up. There wouldn't be streetwear culture without hip-hop. Let me reiterate, there will always be a streetwear culture in every hood in America, but hip-hop took our streetwear culture global. I moved back to the United States after living in Germany, hip-hop was all I had to prepare me growing up in the ghetto, your clothes say a lot about who you are as an individual and what you did. I came back to the States by myself at 14 years old, so I had to grow up quick. At the time, I was into free-styling and battle rapping which allowed me to make friends quickly, which lead to being part of a rap group by the time I left high-school. Streetwear culture is something that if you came from the hood you kind of already knew how to do. Streetwear has become a multi-billion dollar industry and most of those people don't come from the hood. Even Louis Vuitton knows how streetwear is changing the world, now with Virgil Abloh as their lead designer. Streetwear is the new high-fashion.

Pharoh Athletics is what the Company represents which is to improve the development of athletes. With the goal being for athletes to have extended professional careers using our products. Pharoh Clothing is the Purple Label to Pharoh Athletics. The clothes are similar in but there is more creativity, and style in Pharoh Clothing.  From Egyptian theme hoodies, art inspired t-shirts, to Billionaire Vibes, the clothes are made to stand out. Whether your'e at an art museum, at the club, or hanging out, Pharoh Clothing is a vibe not for everyone. I created Pharoh Clothing for me, because I realized that anybody can create a clothing brand. Why spend my money on so called expensive name brands that like our culture but not necessarily the people. Without the people you can't have a culture. I felt weird going into designer stores spending money that I barely had, to be treated like I came in the store to steal. It doesn't make sense to me, since it's our street culture you're selling back to us anyway times a hundred. I think there will be a time where the cool thing to have is your own clothing brand. So, why not lead by example. This new world we're living in will have more people working from home, and I think people will be more conscious about what they wear. streetwear allows people to be comfortable but also represent what their beliefs are which is what streetwear is to the core. 

Question: Where do you see your Company in the next five years?

Ans: I would like to have some type of partnership with Nike or Adidas. Nike owns the sport industry in America, but Adidas owns soccer globally. Both Companies have their advantages but I'm not focused on the global dominance of the Company, my focus is on the opportunity. As I mentioned before, coming from where I'm from having an opportunity to do what you love on global scale will be more than I can want. And if that never happens, I'm okay with that also. I created a Company from a sketch and now I have two brands. I come from a family of entrepreneurs who made their own way even when their skin color closed more doors then I can imagine. Who knows, if I have kids the Company will be handed down to them, and that's more then enough.