D
esigner Brands has unveiled the FIRST
JEM, the inaugural shoe from the JEMS by
PENSOLE brand. It was made at a factory
in Somersworth, NH that opened earlier
this year as part of a partnership between Designer
Brands and JEMS by PENSOLE focused on creating
opportunity for underrepresented Black designers in
the footwear industry. e FIRST JEM shoe, available
exclusively at DSW.com, is inspired by American
history through the lens of Jan Ernst Matzeliger, a
Black man who transformed the industry 140 years
ago by inventing the Lasting Machine. "e FIRST
JEM celebrates Matzeliger's little-known legacy," said
Dr. D'Wayne Edwards, founder of JEMS by PENSOLE
and Detroit-based Pensole Lewis College of Business
& Design. Designer Brands and JEMS by PENSOLE
plan to utilize the new Somersworth factory — one
of the first Black-owned footwear factories in the
U.S. — to roll out future lines of athletic footwear by
new brands and underrepresented designers in the
coming years. n
FIRST JEM Carries a Legacy
NEW PRODUCT
Dr. D'Wayne Edwards
