Story by Capi Lynn. Photo by Kevin Neri. Published Feb. 27, 2025 by the Salem Statesman Journal. Sokolowski is a CSWS faculty affiliate.
Susan Sokolowski remembers the ill-fitting uniforms when she played youth and high school soccer as a Title IX athlete in New York state.
Living in the glow of the fashion industry, it puzzled her why no one was creating clothing specifically for female athletes.
The void motivated her to want to work in the sports industry and seek more inclusive design.
“When you’re young, sometimes you have crazy ideas,” Sokolowski said. “My crazy idea came to fruition, and I’m still living that.”
Sokolowski, who has more than 30 years' experience in performance sporting goods for women and diverse and underserved populations, is being highlighted as part of USA TODAY’s Women of the Year program.
Susan Sokolowski remembers the ill-fitting uniforms when she played youth and high school soccer as a Title IX athlete in New York state.
Living in the glow of the fashion industry, it puzzled her why no one was creating clothing specifically for female athletes.
The void motivated her to want to work in the sports industry and seek more inclusive design.
“When you’re young, sometimes you have crazy ideas,” Sokolowski said. “My crazy idea came to fruition, and I’m still living that.”
Sokolowski, who has more than 30 years' experience in performance sporting goods for women and diverse and underserved populations, is being highlighted as part of USA TODAY’s Women of the Year program.
She has been recognized internationally for her achievements in design innovation. She is listed as an inventor on more than 100 domestic and foreign patents, many of them belonging to Nike, the company she worked for from 1998 to 2016. The inventions range from footwear components to moisture management garments and sports bra cups.
Her first job with Nike was as an equipment designer for the U.S. women’s soccer program, which at the time included Mia Hamm and Brandi Chastain. Sokolowski later became an innovation designer for Nike's new women’s footwear division and eventually the innovation director for global apparel, which included Olympic uniforms.
Sokolowski left in 2016 to become the founding director and professor of Sports Product Design at the University of Oregon, where she continues to mentor and inspire the next generation in product design and development. She continued to consult for Nike.
The UO master of science program admits up to 20 students each fall with undergraduate degrees in engineering, design, biomechanics, kinesiology, and physiology. The program includes students from as far away as Canada, China, India and South Korea.
“It’s really amazing how small a program we are, and how short of time we’ve been in existence, and the reach we’ve had from around the world,” Sokolowski said. “What’s really cool is now we’re seeing our students out in the industry and they’re not only working here in Oregon, but they’re working internationally.”
Much of her career has focused on how materials and fit make a difference in sports apparel, footwear, and equipment. In addition to the Sports Product Design program, she has taken her reputation as a game-changing innovator to Lululemon, where she is Vice President of Footwear Innovation.
“Even when I moved into the sports industry in the late 1990s, women were still not being served,” Sokolowski said. “A lot of products were being designed for men and just recolored, what we would call 'shrinking and pinking it' in the industry. It really wasn’t until the early 2000s that products for female athletes were a focus.
“Even today, I would say there’s still a lot of work to do in this space.”