n the 10,000 years since we strapped on sandals made of sagebrush, shoes have run the gamut from 20-inch-high platforms worn in medieval Venice, Italy, to slip-ons made of bears’ hind paws (claws included) worn by Native American shamans. But shoe shows are typically flat-footed when it comes to innovative exhibit design.

This kind of pedestrian exhibiting created an 18EE-sized opportunity/challenge for Topline Corp. of Bellevue, WA, which manufacturers and markets the product line Rocawear. A first-time exhibitor at The World Shoe Association Show in Las Vegas last February, New York-based Rocawear, founded by hip-hop mogul Jay-Z, was going toe-to-toe with 1,600 exhibitors showcasing 6,000 different brands.

With hopes of generating awareness and setting Rocawear apart from the product-laden exhibits, the companies decided on a booth that felt luxurious and exclusive — and more like a nightclub than a footwear company.

The resulting 50-by-50-foot exhibit did everything but spotlight shoes. Outside the booth, barefoot mannequins clad in the company’s latest dresses and handbags fronted walls that looked like giant louvered shutters. Behind the shutters hung a drape of translucent polyester mesh that teased passersby with glimpses of the club-like interior.

Like the VIP rooms at nightspots Jay-Z owns, you couldn’t get inside the booth without an invitation. Lucky invitees entered under a 16-by-16-foot LED portal featuring Jay-Z’s music videos. Once inside, they saw understated earth tones — oyster-white leather Barcelona chairs, cinnamon-brown leather sofas, ebony-wood tables, and a smoky-black vinyl floor. Conspicuous by their absence, the shoes and other accessories were displayed in four conference areas.

Rocawear’s blinged-out booth stood out like a Jimmy Choo shoe in a pile of Keds. “The exhibit complements the lifestyle of the hip-hop scene,” says Steve Cook, a senior designer for Pinnacle. “It is as bold as hip-hop itself.”

Client: Topline Corp., Bellevue, WA
Design/Fabrication: Pinnacle Exhibits Inc., Hillsboro, OR
Size: 2,500 square feet
Estimated Cost: $375,000
Estimated Cost/Square Foot: $150