Someone 2 Know Jonathan “Jon” Curran is a small business owner in Reno. As an entrepreneur, he says he's always working on ways to bring creative ideas to life.
His most recent creation is having an unintended - and positive – impact. "Shu Chains, it's a - it's an accent for shoes but it's also a replacement for shoe laces,” Curran explains.
He can even install them on to your sneakers for you!
The chains can replace one row of regular laces - or several - and they virtually eliminate the need to tie shoe laces. "I have most of my shoes set up so I can slip on and off."
It turns out there are a many reason why slip-on shoes are important to different people, as Jon says learned from one customer. "She has a son named Ben who has Down syndrome and Ben hates people touching his shoes, doesn't like to tie his shoes, doesn't like to keep his shoes on."
So, mom and son decided to give Shu Chains a try and came in to get fitted.
"As soon as he put these things on he was looking at his feet when he was walking around, just mesmerized by these cool blingy things that were keeping his shoes on his feet.”
Curran says the Shu Chains can be beneficial to anyone with sensory issues or arthritis - something he suffers from. "I don't like tying my shoes either. It's just one other daunting task in the day that just gonna further exacerbate my situation.”
The Shu Chains are a relatively new venture for Curran. He's been doing embroidery work for years, something he learned as a kid.
Several years ago, shoes came into the picture when he was asked to create a custom design for a certain president.
"Barack Obama is playing golf in Florida on Friday - it's Monday, mind you - and I have to ship them out by Wednesday morning to get there on time.”
Jon made the deadline and was given a pair to keep for himself (they have a “44” embroidered near the heal).
Now Curran is focusing on his Shu Chains
"Just being creative is my life."
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As for the Shu Chains themselves - they're made of a light stainless steel and prices start at $10 a pair.
We have a link to the website here - https://shuchains.com/
