The Best FW20 Footwear Unveiled at Fashion Week
Fashion Week FW20 Men’s — with the exception of New York (February 3 - 5) — is officially in the books, meaning we can now take stock of the best and most newsworthy sneakers that debuted on the runways and in the showrooms over the past few weeks.
As has become tradition, Paris was the biggest event on the calendar, with most of the sneakers in our list unveiled in the French capital. By now, brands and designers have learned all about the benefits of strategically placing their most exciting new footwear on the runway, as the shoes often attract as much attention as the garms themselves.
Amongst footwear from the usual suspects — such as Off-White™, Louis Vuitton, Nike, and adidas — brands such as Filling Pieces, Casablanca, and Lanvin managed to capture our attention thanks to interesting (and sometimes surprising) designs.
Scroll through our roundup below for the lowdown on the best sneakers unveiled at Fashion Week Men’s FW20.
sacai x Nike Part III
sacai and Nike teamed up to release the most sought-after sneaker collaboration of 2019, and, after rumors that the pair would be dropping another collection, they unveiled a third, double-everything sneaker style at Paris Fashion Week. Following the LDWaffle and Blazer Mid, the two brands will be releasing three colorways of the Vapor Waffle later this year. The sneaker combines vintage and contemporary Nike running designs and follows the first collection's double-everything theme.
Louis Vuitton
Fashion month wouldn’t be complete without Louis Vuitton and Virgil Abloh making a splash, which they achieved with the unveiling of their Air Jordan 3-inspired sneaker and leather Oxford with interchangeable straps. Having already taken cues from old-school basketball shoes in earlier collections, Abloh made it very obvious which of MJ’s signature sneakers served as the inspiration for the FW20 sneaker.
Off-White™ x Nike
The biggest sneaker news was that Virgil Abloh officially confirmed the existence of the long-rumored Off-White™ x Nike Air Jordan 5 in black. The designer wore the pair on the way to his show and his models walked the catwalk in them, too. Just as with previous Abloh-designed Air Jordan models unveiled in Paris, release information for the AJ5 will follow in the coming months.
Raf Simons (Runner)
Raf Simons made waves when he announced his eponymous label would be unveiling eight sportswear-influenced footwear styles. Sneakerheads were quick to reference the designer’s game-changing adidas Ozweego collaboration, though were left slightly disappointed when the collection was, in fact, much more formal than expected.
Lanvin
Lanvin unveiled a surprisingly skateboard-inspired footwear style at Paris Fashion Week. The sneaker looks to be a high-end reinterpretation of mid-’00s skate shoes, specifically the Osiris D3.
GmbH x ASICS
Together, ASICS and GmbH unveiled a new collaborative footwear collection, comprising two styles. The first looks to be the ASICS GEL-Quantum, though it has been slightly modified by GmbH. The other model is a hybrid and much more formal. The upper takes cues from the chappal, a traditional footwear style originating in India, and features an upper with overlapping straps at the forefoot. The sole unit looks to be taken from the recently-relaunched, samurai armor-inspired GEL-Kinsei OG.
Gucci Ultrapace R
The Gucci Ultrapace R is the storied fashion house’s latest attempt to bridge the gap between luxury and sportswear. The multi-colored upper crafted from synthetic materials, paired with a dial closure on the tongue, and the futuristic, translucent midsole, are all nods to features seen on actual sportswear models — albeit with Gucci’s signature high-end twist.
Pyer Moss Sculpt 1
Though not officially unveiled on a runway, the Pyer Moss Sculpt 1 was shared on Instagram by Kerby Jean-Raymond while the designer was in Paris for Fashion Week. Pyer Moss’ partnership with Reebok has birthed several hits, and this in-house design looks to be a strong follow-up.
Dior FW20
The Dior B23 sneaker was once again given the monogram treatment, though this time it was applied with different techniques and in different textures, such as the furry, fleece-like fabric above.
Kiko Kostadinov x ASICS
Another season, another Kiko Kostadinov x ASICS collaboration. This time, the Bulgarian designer unveiled a laceless, mesh runner that features a velcro strap across the top of the forefoot.
COMME des GARÇONS SHIRT x ASICS GEL-Lyte 3
With the ASICS GEL-Lyte 3 celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, fellow Japanese label COMME des GARÇONS SHIRT has given the sneaker a multi-colored camouflage makeover as part of its FW20 collection.
Craig Green x adidas
Craig Green’s partnership with adidas extends to FW20, as the designer unveiled an extensive collection of packaging-inspired sneakers. Styles reinterpreted by Green include the Superstar and Mundial.
Li-Ning
Li-Ning unveiled a collaboration with Neil Barrett during Milan Fashion Week (slides 6 & 7) before debuting a range of footwear styles in Paris. These included a collaboration with Jackie Chan, Way of Wade footwear, and several in-house styles. Characteristically, they all pushed the boundaries of footwear design and were certainly eye-catching.
Casablanca x New Balance
Casablanca, the emerging Parisian brand that was founded by Pigalle co-founder Charaf Tajer, debuted its New Balance collaboration on the runway in Paris. Choosing to rework the New Balance 327, Casablanca has gone down a distinctly vintage running route, with pops of orange and green providing a welcome contrast to the predominantly neutral base tones.
Wales Bonner x adidas
Wales Bonner’s adidas footwear collection looks to be partly inspired by bowling shoes, reworking some of adidas’ archival silhouettes. Other highlights include an adidas Samba with embroidered detailing and co-branding on the fold-over tongue.
Filling Pieces
Filling Pieces has continued to transform itself, launching new and more innovative silhouettes to diversify its offering. Paris FW20 was no different, as the Dutch brand unveiled its latest, running-inspired design. Check it out in the gallery above.
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