ShoeBaker × MYOW: Everybody Needs Love

ShoeBaker × MYOW / Character development since 2019

Everybody needs love. That is what OX believes, and it is the heart of this collaboration.

The ingredients: Michigan roots and a message that matters

Back in 2019, I began helping develop the characters for MYOW, Make Your Own Way, a brand originally founded in Michigan. My part in the story started with character development: helping give the brand’s message a personality people could connect with.

MYOW takes that message from school to school, encouraging uniqueness without exemption. Being yourself without being excluded. That idea gives the work a purpose beyond the finished product.

Meet OX

The character on these bags is OX. His belief is simple: everybody needs love. His expressive face and unmistakable silhouette give that message a form you can carry with you.

For me, character development is an opportunity to make an idea feel familiar. You see the character first, then discover what he stands for. OX opens that door to a conversation about individuality, acceptance, and belonging.

Two colors. One message.

The details you can see

The exterior design carries the character across the front of the bag, with dimensional ears extending above the rounded silhouette. Outlined artwork, visible stitching, and contrasting accents make the expression easy to recognize.

• Colorways: black and yellow.
• Exterior appearance: a smooth, lightly textured finish.
• Character treatment: outlined facial features and contrasting graphic details across the front.
• Shape: a rounded backpack body with projecting character ears.
• Visible hardware: gold-tone zipper pulls.
• Carry details: a top handle and shoulder straps visible in the reference.

Campaign visuals are AI-assisted recreations of the supplied product image. Exact material composition, lining, dimensions, capacity, and care instructions have not yet been confirmed.

Release day: December 5, 2026

The OX backpacks release at Sneaker Con Atlanta on Saturday, December 5, 2026, at the Cobb Convention Center. I will be there doing live engraving.

The event runs from noon to 7 p.m. Eastern at 2 Galleria Pkwy SE, Atlanta, GA 30339. Come see the bags and connect with me while I work.

This is another part of the ShoeBaker story: taking an idea, giving it character, and watching it find its way into the world.

Make your own way. Everybody needs love.

Explore the brand collaboration in the portfolio →