I'm Tony, a Brooklyn native with Guatemalan roots and a serious passion for design.

Growing up, I would look forward to opening gifts on Christmas Eve. My mom would always hook me up with a new Lego set. After a few years, I amassed a pretty big collection of foot piercing plastic bricks. I had fun building houses, boats, vehicles, and whatever else I could imagine. I think that’s where my creativity and interest in design began to develop.

Fast forward a few years and that interest started to focus around buildings. So, I decided to pursue a career in architecture at the City College of New York. I commuted a torturous hour and a half from south Brooklyn to Harlem almost everyday. But it was worth it, cuz I fell in love with architecture. I really enjoyed honing my design skills during that time. I was pretty decent at it; not to brag or anything, but I got a couple of awards. I then received my Bachelor of Architecture in 2014 and 4 years later I received my license to practice architecture in New York. Yup, ya boy is a licensed professional. Holla at me!

Now you’re probably thinking “ok... this is a bio for an architect, where dafuq do sneakers come in?”. Well, sneakers were kinda always there. I grew up in Brooklyn, where sneakers are a big part of the culture. Naturally, I became a sneaker head and built a pretty decent collection of neck breaking kicks. So after 5 years of intense work in the architecture field, I decided to take the design skills I developed in architecture and apply them to footwear. It was time to start my quest to learn everything I could about footwear design. I read a bunch of books, followed a ton of designers, and ultimately signed up for the Air Jordan 3 class with the Shoe Surgeon. After completing that class in 2019, I realized that my goal of becoming a footwear designer was definitely achievable.

With this newfound inspiration and motivation, I hit the ground running. I invested in a few tools and materials and started practicing making sneakers. As I continued working on my craft, I became more interested in general leatherwork and eventually just the idea of making. Now that I was bringing my ideas to life, I didn’t want to stop. I wanted to design and make everything, not just sneakers. I realized the maker in me had been neglected since the last time I picked up a Lego brick. The special thing about those bricks is not only do they let you design but they also let you materialize your ideas with your own hands. That was missing in my life. Now that I’m reconnecting with the maker in me and refining my design skills, I'm more motivated and determined to unleash my creativity.

All of this led to Pioneer Design Lab. Not only is it an outlet for my creativity but a place where I can share the joy of designing and making with all of you.

Thank you for visiting. I hope our work inspires you to share your ideas with the world!