Santia Deck, who made history last year as the first female athlete to sign a multi-million dollar deal to play football, has announced that Tronus, her futuristic footwear startup, has formed a historic partnership with Foot Locker, Inc.’s subsidiary Eastbay.
“I just think about all the young people, especially girls and people of color, who will see this as proof that impossible dreams can come true,” CEO Santia Deck shares. The road to this moment has not been easy, but Deck and the entire team at Tronus – the “Tronus tribe” – would agree it has all been worth it. The resilience required is baked into the company’s culture and stems largely from its leadership and origin story.
Tronus is the first sneaker company owned by a professional female athlete. Santia, who was at one point an Olympic hopeful, had learned to channel dashed dreams into fuel for an even bigger impact. After learning that the rugby route she’d started after college might not pan out as she hoped, Santia turned her sights to American-style football. Obviously, no clear path for women in this heavy contact sport existed, but Deck was determined. Fast forward to the top of 2020, when Santia was awarded a multi-million-dollar deal to play the sport she loved with the newly formed WFLA.
Santia had made history and a new lane for herself all at once, and then unfortunately the pandemic began. Instead of tabling her passion and drive, she once again made a major pivot after learning that the pandemic would delay the WFLA’s first season. She and her mother, Cynthia Cureton-Robles, launched Tronus during the height of the pandemic. The demand for the first shoes they offered for pre-order crashed their website in the first 24 hours.
This is the type of determination that landed Santia a seat at the table with one of the largest retailers in the world. However, it’s not just drive and determination, it’s also data. In the recent press release for the company’s first-anniversary Cureton-Robles, COO at Tronus, said that she’d “read that the leading company [in athletic footwear] sold $8,000 worth of running shoes during its first year in 1964. I calculated inflation, and that’d be a little over $70,000 today.” Tronus surpassed that figure within its first four days of operation. Moving merchandise at that level after starting a brand from seemingly nothing gets attention.
The Eastbay team is excited to partner with Santia and bring this exclusive product to their consumers. With the Tronus Tribe headed to MAGIC (the most comprehensive marketplace in the US for apparel, footwear, etc.) in Las Vegas next week, the announcement could not have come at a better time. “I may not get any medals, but I get to show everyone that their dreams can bring home the gold,” offers Deck. Santia’s loyal social media followers and fans of the Tronus brand are already buzzing with excitement and offering congratulations to a fellow dreamer who refuses to lose.
Tronus shoes will officially be available online at Eastbay.com starting Sept. 15th, 2021.
About Tronus
Tronus invites you to slide into luxury with the lightest, most comfortable unisex sneaker in the world. History-making female football player made history a 2nd time as the 1st female athlete to own a sneaker company. Owner, Santia Deck spent several years developing a sleek futuristic sock-top sneaker designed to mold to your foot, creating an almost euphoric “walking on air” kind of experience. The bold look draws you in, and the feel will get you hooked. Tronus means throne – a reminder that we are all worth the royal treatment.
This disruptive startup began taking pre-orders when it launched in July of 2020. The company created a buzz and made a name for itself while their customers anxiously waited for the first-ever boxes of Tronus sneakers to arrive on their doorsteps. Now, customers of all ages – including celebrity supporters – are becoming loyal Tronus fans.
Many celebrities are fans such as NFL great, Deion Sanders; Rappers like Waka Flocka and Z-Ro; Gospel singer, James Fortune; Comedian, Karlous Miller and Soccer Superstar, Josef Martinez and Celebrity Jeweler, Johnny Dang to name a few.
