When Joe Minisquero was in high school in the 1990s, he spent his afternoons skating at parks with friends, listening to music and chasing the newest things in action sports.
That includes grind shoes, specialized sneakers equipped with a hard, recessed plastic or glass-fiber plate at the shoe’s midsection. A curvature of the grind plate helps steady street sport users as they slide or “grind” along rails and ledges
“Everyone used them at school,” he said. “You weren’t allowed to use them after a while. People were grinding at school on things.”
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The shoes, then branded by Soap, faded in popularity in the early 2000s. In the mid-2000s, Minisquero searched eBay for pairs.
“I was just buying what I could find,” he said. “Some people were selling the old ones from the ’90s, but they were very, very overpriced. When I got them, they weren’t in the best shape.”
After a bit, he became frustrated, so he and his business partner, Brian J. Esposito, connected with Powerslide, a German skate company known for its inline skates. Minisquero and Esposito wanted to improve grindshoes so they are more durable and better suited to a generation raised on YouTube.
“They had just created the grindshoe footwear now known as Epic Grindshoes,” said Minisquero, a Glendale native who now lives in Oceanside, California.
“They enhanced the footwear to be lighter. The shoes have a better style and design. They’re fitted for 2026 versus 1998.”
Epic Grindshoes launched in 2021. Minisquero became chief community officer, handling everything stateside: events, retailer outreach and the growing online community.
Sneakers that let wearers grind sound fictional.
“The difference is in the bottom of the shoe,” Minisquero explained. “There is this built‑in plate with a little arch. You can slide on a rail, a ledge, anything you can wax.”
The plate doesn’t affect walking, but it turns handrails, curbs, and skate‑park features into terrain. They are the unofficial street sport shoe that’s finding a second life.
Minisquero still uses the shoes anywhere my family and I travel — Hawaii, New York, Seattle or San Francisco. “Anywhere we travel, I bring a pair with me,” he said. “It’s good PR.”
His 11‑year‑old daughter has tried them, too. “She’s says, ‘Those are weird, dad,’” he said, laughing. “But she thinks they’re cool.”
The new generation discovering Epic Grindshoes isn’t just kids. Parkour athletes, freerunners and former inline skaters have adopted them as a hybrid tool. They’re something that lets them extend tricks and balance longer. “A lot of people try to compete on how long of a rail they can do,” Minisquero said. “Was that a 10‑set of stairs? Twenty? How far can you go?”
Minisquero — who surfs, skates and still uses the grind shoes at local parks in Oceanside — said the company is trying to reach out to the Arizona market.
“Some people don’t know these are back out,” he said. “It’s something fun that keeps you active, something parents can show their kids. Almost everyone, if you show them the shoe, they’re like, ‘Oh, I totally remember those.’ We enjoy bringing them back.”
