Michael Krajicek would be the first to let you know he likes to maintain issues easy. He grew up in Lake Charles, Louisiana, a blue-collar metropolis identified for blues music, petrochemical refineries and the waterways that ribbon by means of its downtown. It’s right here that Krajicek adopted a philosophy that’s guided him all through his profession: Discover the suitable instruments for the suitable job.
This considering is now the inspiration of Atreyu, the operating model of stripped-down, no-frills kicks that Krajicek based in 2020—initially as a operating shoe subscription (the primary of its form) and now as a model obtainable at retailers like REI.
Atreyu’s mission has at all times been to create trainers that get the job finished—no want for flashy options or myriad colorways that would come at a price to the client. As a substitute, the designs are clear; the sizes are unisex; and every shoe contains a 6 mm drop, which Krajicek considers a middle-ground geometry that may work for runners of many ranges. As a result of that’s one other a part of his mission: Make sneakers that each beginner runners and elite athletes can prepare in.
“We [are] about instruments, blue collar-town instruments.” Krajicek says throughout a video interview. He’s sitting in his Austin, Texas, loft, which doubles as his workplace. A street bike hangs from the ceiling. His fiancé, Lena Reese, reclines on a sofa behind him, a pc open on her lap. She helps handle Atreyu’s social media. “No person was exhibiting up with flashy stuff [in Louisiana]. … Instruments have been simply one thing to get the factor finished, so I hope that I’ve taken that type of concept, that mentality into [Atreyu].”
The Atreyu Line Up
One in all Atreyu’s first sneakers, The Base Mannequin, is described on the model’s web site because the embodiment of their guideline: Honor simplicity. There are three different core trainers: the Every day Coach, The Artist and The Base Path. They’re all designed for use in a rotation: The Every day Coach for shorter runs, intervals in addition to for restoration miles and lengthy runs; The Artist for race day; The Base Path for miles on combined terrain. At $85 to $115 every, the costs are extra approachable than many different sneakers available on the market. Prioritizing the necessities is a technique to simplify a sport that, lately, has targeted on maximal trainers—assume thick cushioning, broad bases, fortified construction.
“The thought was to strip it down and let folks really feel the bottom once more, let folks really feel their our bodies and let the burden of their our bodies hit the bottom how they’re imagined to naturally,” says Jake Martin, athlete expertise supervisor for Atreyu (pronounced uh-tray-you). “That’s why [a beginner runner and an expert runner] can each put on these sneakers.”
However there’s nonetheless work to be finished to draw new folks to the exercise. In 2022, Krajicek polled clients who had bought three or extra occasions from Atreyu, and most recognized as intermediate or superior runners.
“Very, only a few runners designated themselves as newbie, and I wasn’t very pleased with that,” Krajicek says. “The factor that I believe we can provide again essentially the most … is inviting folks into operating tradition and making that accessible and utilizing operating as a life-change software.”
Discovering Group in Operating
Krajicek himself leaned on operating whereas nonetheless dwelling in Louisiana. It was a technique to dedicate himself to non-public wellness after turning into sober in 2013. In his hometown, Krajicek says runners didn’t appear to care about what everyone else was doing or what operating developments have been standard. They only ran. That sort of operating neighborhood is one thing he desires to recreate inside Atreyu. He desires others to have that outlet and to really feel that sense of belonging. “The entire sport was the neighborhood,” he says. “One thing about it was simply enhanced in that small-town surroundings.”
At Atreyu, neighborhood exhibits up as weekly run teams in Austin, the place the model —and its 3-person crew—relies. Fostering a way of neighborhood additionally performs a serious position in how Krajicek and Martin do enterprise. The model has by no means had a devoted advertising and marketing funds, Martin says. As a substitute, they depend on forming lasting relationships with their clients. The aim is that folks will be taught concerning the model by means of phrase of mouth—completely satisfied clients beget completely satisfied clients.
“We would like each single individual that comes by means of the funnel to essentially really feel the expertise and actually get pleasure from it and get behind it,” Martin says. “If everyone seems to be coming by means of in that method, it’s going to develop itself and it’s going to be a extremely tight neighborhood.”
The place Individuality Meets Simplicity
This neighborhood side can be about discovering methods to rejoice runners’ particular person qualities, all whereas designing for a lot of kinds of runners. Once more, Krajicek credit the sneakers’ uncomplicated design in serving to them obtain this. It’s a conventional shoe with out loads of further cushioning. This permits runners to really feel their toes hitting pavement, which Krajicek says can allow them to extra simply detect when one thing is off with their stride. Runners can then enhance their particular person weaknesses. “My want was to construct a product that would work for everyone, understanding that everyone’s completely different,” says Krajicek.
Nonetheless, Krajicek says that not each runner will desire a pair of his model’s sneakers. And that’s OK. He considers the sneakers to be one in every of many instruments folks can select from. A pair of Atreyu runners could be the good match for somebody, or they could be one in every of a number of sneakers in an individual’s rotation. “We’re an choice. We’re not right here to resolve each single drawback,” Krajicek says. “That’s what REI is for—to have a market to purchase the suitable software for the suitable job.”
So, what’s subsequent for Atreyu?
Possibly an app or a weblog to supply academic instruments, like coaching plans and operating suggestions in an app or on a weblog. Possibly extra colorways. Possibly, in time, one other shoe.
“I really like the thought of constructing off the following one. I name it a software program replace. We’re on 1.1,” he says. “To get to a 2 will probably be a significant change.”
