Sneaking in style
Streetwear staples like hoodies have become must-haves while the trendier crowd is swapping dress shoes or stilettoes with designer sneakers. Taking cues from this, more high-end brands are roping in designers with streetwear or sportwear credibility, hoping to share a piece of the pie.
Meanwhile, labels like Fendi and Marc Jacobs have opted for safer options, by coming up with simple high-cut slip-ons or teaming up with sportswear brands and relying on the latter’s forte.
The latest example is Stella McCartney and adidas’ first all-vegan (made of recycled polyester) version of the classic greentabbed Stan Smith.
Some seemed to have been put under pressure to come up with quirkier versions, with each carrying a hefty price tag, to boot. Gucci goes overboard with the hiking- boots-inspired Flashtrek, complete with crystals wrapped around the bulky kicks.
Balenciaga creative director Demna Gvasalia turned heads with his hunky, three-soled Triple S with loud colours, which is nicknamed “the Frankenstein of footwear” by critics.
The latest to jump onto the bandwagon is Jimmy Choo with The Diamond Sneaker embedded with Swarovski crystals.
For businesswoman Norish Karim, buying designer sneakers is more about boosting self-image as well as to reward herself.
Her collection includes Gucci, Roberto Cavalli, DKNY, Dolce & Gabbana and Stella McCartney, with each retailing at more than RM2,000.
“I’m fashionable and as a businesswoman, it’s important to look presentabroad,” Karl Lagerfeld upped the game for sneakers in fashion houses after the Chanel couture show in Paris in January 2014, where his models catwalked in custom sneakers made by couture shoemaker Massaro. able. When it comes to casual wear, I like to complement my style with comfortable yet stylish sneakers. I usually go for both brand and design.
“Besides image, I like to reward myself with some luxuries once in a while,” says Norish, who runs fashion label Norish Kareem Couture and a soon-to-open boutique cafe in London.
“Most of the sneakers give me warmth and comfort, especially when I travel she says, adding that she keeps her sneakers in their original boxes and sends them to shoe spas for maintenance.
Fashion retail resale expert Akmal Mohamad says some of his customers treat designer shoes as an investment, saving them for the resale market.
“I have a customer, who is a businessman in his 30s, and his designer shoe collections are nicely stacked in transparent boxes.