Author: Chris Mak
C.P. Company have partnered with adidas Originals to celebrate the enduring ardour of Casual Culture.
A shared passion for quality and innovation brings adidas and C.P. Company together to rework iconic pieces.
Some things feel they are destined to happen and in C.P. Company’s first ever collaboration, adidas Originals put a significant notch on the post as these two titans work with shared values and inseparable stories.
For generations, football fans have been spontaneously pairing adidas trainers with C.P. Company garments off the field and on the terraces. Now its time for the culmination of this historic relationship between the two sartorial powerhouses, one that turns decades of casual culture into a mass premonition.
The story is one of a German and Italian design genius finding reverence in the tribally-defined rhythms and allegiances of football fandom.
C.P. Company was founded by the late Massimo Ostiin 1971, in his beloved hometown of Bologna. Widely considered to be the godfather of Italian Sportswear. A commitment to innovation remains hardwired within C.P. Company, protected and extended by his son, Lorenzo, and the brand’s design team, Led by Alessandro Pungetti and Paul Harvey.
Neither brand has approached this collaboration with a lax attitude, both placing great faith in each other’s expertise to transform pieces that others might have considered irreplaceable. The classic Samba sneaker is reworked, the Kamanda silhouette receives two iterations and one of C.P. Company’s quintessential Goggle Jackets is transformed into the adidasExplorer.
A collection that sees two brands unmistakable identities bravely evolving seminal pieces without betraying their origins and that pays homage to the loyalty of both brands.
Shot on location by Footpatrol for Adidas Originals by C.P. Company.
adidas Originals by C.P Company is now available online. Footwear sizes range from UK6 – UK12 (including half sizes), whilst apparel sizes range from S – XL. Prices across the collection range from £70 – £700.
Shop adidas by C.P. Company now via the Footpatrol Website
Footpatrol / Highs & Lows for Reebok Classics.
Common; belonging equally to, or shared alike by, two or more or all in question.
Youth; an experience that may shape an individual’s level of dependency, which can be marked in various ways according to different cultural perspectives.
Common Youth, as told by Footpatrol and Highs and Lows for Reebok Classic.
London based footwear store Footpatrol travel down under to begin a partnership with Perth based retailer Highs and Lows. This is the first partnership between the two brands who together touch on the common differences between the U.K and Australia between the late 80s to the early 90s.
The project titled ‘Common Youth’ comes from the childhood experiences of Matt Thomas (founder & creative director of sneaker boutique HAL). As a teenager Matt travelled from Australia to England visiting family members whilst noticing the similarities between Australian and British youth culture. Looking back to this era we’ve worked together on two iconic silhouettes the Reebok Classic Leather Clip – a rendition of the Classic Leather originally released in the 1980s, and the Phase One Pro, introduced into the market in the mid 80’s.
Both silhouettes feature White premium vintage leather uppers to resonate that of the era. The Burgundy and Navy accents seen throughout both models reference the colours of the British & Australian passport, with the additional Metallic Gold details completing the look. Dual branded logos feature throughout with a unique tongue label featuring a custom designed Lion & Kangaroo Commonwealth crest around the Reebok Classic logo.
To accompany the collection, we have produced a short film entitled Common Youth:
Common Youth sees Daniel, an Australian teenager, embark on a trip to visit his British family for the summer. Set against a backdrop of early 90s music and pop culture, the film goes on a journey from the mundane to the hedonistic, as Daniel is welcomed into the fold by his older cousin, Tony.
Although apprehensive as first, the boys soon discover a shared love for music and everything that goes along with it, and through this Daniel begins to feel at home. Their story is one of international friendship, common values, and shared identity.
The Reebok Classic features a full premium leather upper combined with navy vector stripes and cream overlays. Signature crest logo on the Burgundy tongue tab as well as Gold lace eyelets. Further details include dual branded logos on the Navy leather footbed and a Silver heel counter. A mixture of Navy and Burgundy on the outsole completes the shoe. Additional two sets of flat laces (White with Navy aglets / Cream with Burgundy aglets) are included.
The Reebok Phase One Pro upper is dressed in a mixture of premium vintage leather along with Cream nubuck overlays. Reebok’s signature crest logo on the tongue tab done in Navy and Gold. Detailing includes a Gold dual branded logo lock up on the heel, heel counter in Silver as well as a repeat logo pull tab throughout the tongue. Additional two sets of flat laces (White with Navy aglets / Cream with Burgundy aglets) are included.
The Footpatrol / HAL ‘Common Youth’ collection is now available in-store and online at a special pop up shop alongside clothing apparel collection at 40 Berwick St, Soho W1F 8RX.
Shop The Footpatrol x HAL x Reebok Collection now on the Footpatrol Website
Pharrell Williams SOLARHU Collection
Combining the performance breakthroughs of adidas with the fearless colours, bold patterns, and stylistic air of East Africa, where running is deeply ingrained in culture.
adidas Originals and Pharrell Williams continue their collaborative Hu series for Fall/Winter 2018, reiterating their common belief that, through sport, we all have the power to transform lives.
Pharrell expresses his fondness for the peaceful, meditative nature of running, seeking to combine the performance breakthroughs of adidas with the fearless colours, bold patterns, and stylistic air of East Africa.
Pharrell’s connection to creativity is embodied in two exclusive styles of footwear and one piece of apparel.
Expressed in tones of aqua, scarlet, yellow, collegiate green, and collegiate purple. adidas Primeknit material is reimagined to evoke a naïve, handmade sensibility contrasted with
the familiar adidas toolings and the established aesthetic markers of the collaboration.
The Pharrell Williams SOLARHU NMD evolves the iconic NMD style with a new, trail-inspired outsole and ribbed Primeknit fabric that evokes intricate weaving techniques in a clash of colours. Contrasting patches inspired by running bibs are emblazoned on the front of each pair and feature coordinated slogans like “MOTHER” and “LAND”
or “EMPOWER” and “INSPIRE” or the Swahili words “MIELE” (forever) and “MBELE” (forward), all spelled out in alphanumeric text.
Additionally, the Tennis Hu is subtly reimagined with its East African inspiration in mind. Most strikingly, the pattern variations of its Primeknit uppers are designed to conjure a handmade look and feel. The shoe also features an EVATM midsole, suede overlays at its heel and toebox, a unique lacing mechanism, and leatherized eye-stay lace holders.
The appeal combines adidas’ innovation and the collection’s stylistic codes into a lightweight, double-layered, woven track top.
adidas Originals by Pharrell Williams SOLARHU Collection. Now available online. Sizes range from UK6 – UK12 (including half sizes), prices range from £110 – £220. Apparel sizes range from S – XL, priced at £170
Shop the Pharrell Williams SOLARHU Collection now via the Footpatrol Website.
First released in 1988, the Air Jordan 3 is heralded as one of the greatest Air Jordan models through his influence on the court and how they transcend to pop culture for lifestyle wear.
The first AJ model to feature a visible air unit, its most notable design is the Elephant print featured on the upper. A popular silhouette within the Jordan signature line, consumers have seen many renditions produced and in 2018, it marks the 30th anniversary of the model.
To commemorate this milestone, Jordan Brand have a new and modernised version by constructing this model with Nike’s popular Flyknit material. It’s not the first time that flyknit and basketball shoes combine as we’ve seen Flyknit Air Jordan 1 as well the Nike Hyperdunk. However, upgrading a timeless basketball sneaker with running material is a new feature that is only for the better.
With the weaving construction of the thread, this provides more breathability on the upper and the intricate pattern of the knit material delivers a multi-textured composition to accentuate the signature Elephant print. In addition, leather is featured in the lining with waxed lacing to give it a premium look. This is all sat on top of a matching black midsole and glow in the dark outsole.
Air Jordan 3 Flyknit ‘Black/Anthracite’ is SOLD-OUT
Shop the latest Air Jordan products now on the Footpatrol Website.
Nike Zoom Spectrum Plus
Originally released in 2003, it initially served as footwear for Japanese runners who required more motion control and structure while the aesthetics were inspired by hot-rod drag racing culture hence the notable flames on the upper.
The silhouette made its return on the scene in 2018 with a collaboration with NYC skate brand Supreme, in which it saw the OG colour making its way back up as well as a new colourway in Black. Coming off the back of those releases, Nike have quickly returned with 2 more new colourways.
To some, the OG aesthetics may seem bold, although, these two colourways are bolder. Still featuring its signature flames the original design however, is overpowered by newly displayed graphics, respectively. One silhouette contains a mixture of Court Purple and Deep Royal Blue along with a blend of patterns in different varieties. There are hints of palm trees and skylines as well as checkerboard displays on the inner lining. A midsole in Geyser Grey and a Japanese kanji appears on the tongue and heel which translates to “War”.
The other pair alongside this silhouette contains similar graphics with hints of palm trees but with areal views of a cityscape in the night. With a mixture of Melon Tint and Palest Purple, like its counterpart, this too sits atop a Geyser Grey midsole and includes the Japanese kanji on tongue and heel.
Nike Zoom Spectrum is now available online. Sizes range from UK5.5 – UK12 (including half sizes), priced at £130.
Shop the Nike Zoom Spectrum Plus now via the Footpatrol Website.
Air Jordan 4 Raptors
Released in 1989, the Air Jordan 4 was a sentiment to Michael Jordan’s athletic prowess and distinctive style. The first model to receive a global market release of the franchise, it also gained notoriety when the shoe featured in Spike Lee’s film Do the Right Thing, transcending the art of basketball with pop culture.
With various retros created down the years, the Jumpman brand are back with another one. This time around, borrowing hues from a colourway off the Air Jordan 7 unofficially dubbed the Raptors.
The entire upper is dressed in predominantly Black premium nubuck with hits of Court Purple on the midsole and University Red on the outsole, inner lining and TPU frames along with black speckle. Jumpman in Court Purple on the heel, embossed Jumpman on the tongue and signature upside down ‘Air Jordan’ branding behind.
Air Jordan 4 NRG Raptors ‘Court Purple/University Red’ is SOLD-OUT
Shop the latest Air Jordan products now on the Footpatrol Website.
adidas Futurecraft 4D
The adidas Futurecraft 4D is the three stripe brands latest innovation for performance footwear. Given it is the world’s first high-performance midsole crafted by light and oxygen, it’s a sneaker that offers more than the usual.
Designed by Carbon CEO and Co-Founder, Dr. Joseph DeSimone along with Carbon’s other co-founders, the process within the inner workings of this technology was through Digital Light Synthesis (DLS). This procedure has the potential to bring modified high-performance products to athletes as DLS aids the limitations of initial 3D printing processes. Essentially, this uses light projection, oxygen-permeable optics and liquid resins that can be programmed to produce the desired results.
Therefore, with DLS technology, each Futurecraft 4D midsole is grown from liquid to optimise running performance. Its single component design is precisely tuned for measured energy return to provide smoother strides for long-lasting runs through 20,000 individual struts.
Broken down into 3 sections of the entire midsole, the structure is to provide the perfect experience. The ‘Heel Zone’ is designed to deliver optimized heel cushioning. Further along the foot around the anatomical arch of the foot is the ‘Transitional Zone’, whereby a seamless bridge design is to give a smooth ride from heel to toe transition. Finally, the ‘Forefoot Zone’ structure is designed to help forward motion.
Born from light #CONSORTIUM4D arrives FW18. We are happy to announce our partnership with adidas Originals on the #CONSORTIUM4D project coming FW18!
Anima Sana in corpore sano.
In 1991 the ASICS Gel Saga amassed a significant following through its comfort, fair price range and unique targeting of mid-mileage runners.
Between 1991 – 1994 the Saga received a handful of small alterations, but it was with Gel technology, a compression moulded EVA midsole, nylon collar padding and lightweight synthetics that completed this shoe and would spawn collaborative sequels in the future.
Our latest collaboration with ASICS TIGER re-visits the iconic silhouette taking you back to the early 90s, back to a time where games consoles and cartoons flooded television sets. Taking cues from the original inspiration, the Footpatrol GEL-Saga is made up of Titanium grey with Iridium Blue and Neon Pink accents reminiscent of the Mecha robot featured in our animation.
The Footpatrol x ASICS TIGER GEL-Saga features a synthetic suede upper with breathable mesh panelling (taken from a famous ASICS Japanese running shoe). The Iridium Blue coloured tiger stripes in high-gloss enamel material links back to the Mecha Robot theme.
The heel cup features the brand name atop the Footpatrol bar logo, further details can be seen on the Neon Pink lace aglets, which reference the code TJG-487 referencing back to the original product code of the 1991 GEL-SAGA. Other details throughout the shoe include our Gasmask logo on the lace loop, the Footpatrol bar logo on the tongue, and the dual branded ASICS Tiger / Footpatrol lock-up logo on the foot-bed.
For the first time in their running, Serigo Muestra, the Co-founder of Sneakerness, and his crew have brought the European sneaker event to London. Founded in 2008, Sneakerness has gained coverage over the years as the event has been hosted in a number of cities such as Amsterdam, Berlin, Cologne, Zurich, Milan and Warsaw respectively. Although these cities are fairly close to each other, Sneakerness have branched out even further to explore the sneaker communities in cities many people wouldn’t know about such as Johannesburg and Moscow. That in itself speaks volume in what Sneakerness originiates from, passion – “Friends who share a long-standing interest in sneakers getting together”.
In 2018, London hosted the sneaker event for the first time at Printworks London, Canada Water. With London being one of the fashion capitals of the world and a hub of sneaker trends, it was only right for Sneakerness to see how they fair in the capital. In conjunction to their common partnerships with various brands, Footpatrol were involved in the mix by giving out t-shirts as part of the goody bags for priority ticket buyers. In addition, we hosted a free raffle give-away to give everybody a chance to win one of each of our selected collaborations such as Converse ‘One Star’, Karhu ‘Fusion 2.0’, Le Coq Sportif ‘Eclat’, New Balance 1500, Asics Gel Lyte III ‘Squad’ and a special box of our collaboration on the Asics Gel Saga. Winners were announced via our IG social on the Sunday afternoon. Congratulations to the winners!
Overall it was a good turn out with those young enthusiasts to OG sneakerheads in attendance. Sneaker sellers from over the country as well as overseas were present to provide old and new footwear to apparel and accessories. The England game was shown also to gather fans of the World Cup 2018 and to watch whether England could progress. They did. You could get a fresh haircut if needs be, your sneakers cleaned and a collection of past iterations of Nike Tuned Air Max was exhibited to see pieces of history.
Thanks Sneakerness for having us!
Following the release of our Footpatrol x ASICS GEL-Saga, we wanted to show what happened behind the scenes and appraise the teams responsible for turning vague ideas into gripping intricate animation sequences, life-size robots and ultimately producing one of our most visually compelling campaigns to date.
Our latest collaboration with ASICSTIGER takes you back to the early 90s, back to a time where games consoles and cartoons took over the tv screens. A TEAMFP member discovers a dormant Mecha robot, giving him the inspiration, he’s been looking for.
Below we would like to thank Art&Graft, StudioFortyThree and IPOS Design. Here’s a short introduction about who they are and the roles they played in the campaign for Footpatrol x ASICS.
Art&Graft
Art&Graft is a London-based, motion-led design studio existing of a highly skilled design team crafting intelligent, original motion and animation reels. Art&Graft’s name reflects a philosophy that culminates everything they do, expert creative concepts realised through an enduring attention to the finest of details.
The campaign centred around a TEAMFP member and his eureka moment in discovering a Mecha robot and designing a shoe that in turn shared characteristics of its appearance. Establishing a visual theme that could support, compliment and ultimately bring thoughts to life was a goal all to intriguing for the A&G team.
The initial stages involved the A&G creative team, discussing unique approaches and sourcing a wide selection of 90s anime, a world of glowing 2D effects, dynamic camera angles and intense fight sequences from which to draw inspiration. From these sessions A&G created a series of concept boards that combined design with attitude, encapsulating exactly what Asics and Footpatrol had been looking for.
Determined to build upon the visual language, A&G continued to push the level of animation on both a technical and creative level. It’s not just the character design that makes the anime from the period so distinctive, it’s also the environments and the colouring. There’s a distinct grade to the images, stripping out solid whites in favour of saturated static hues. Then there’s the neon glows and highlights that come with the narrative. The idea is for it to feel totally part of this world, the trick is to make people think this is an authentic short anime film.
We wanted to create epic scenes relative to anime scripts, i.e Fireballs, Speed lines, Lightning and introduce an environment that was explosive in detail but doesn’t appear hostile. We wanted our characters to represent both brands and affirm an identify people understand all over the world.
We would like to thank Mike, Tom, Jim, Stephen and the rest of the Team at Art&Graft for rendering the ideas a reality creative prowess on the Footpatrol x ASICS GEL-Saga project.
StudioFortyThree
StudioFortyThree are a multi-disciplinary creative design house and manufacturing workshop based in Meon Hill Farm, Hampshire. Working with clients such as Dyson, Asics and Google just to name a few. We travelled to the South to see first-hand on how the process is made in creating CAD renders into 3D models to any scale ie. The Mecha robot.
Tom, co-founder of StudioFortyThree and his team showed us the initial stages of the creative process before manufacturing the model. From thorough designing on CAD renderings, the preciseness is key in making sure the delivery on the manufacturing side is on the same wavelength.
Once the CAD is ready, its processed by their state of the art 7-axis CNC robot in which is an asset in producing computer designs to 3D models. The Mecha robot is made by Polystyrene then coated in resin, sanded down before being painted. Each part of the body is then glued together to deliver a life-sized robot!
We would like to thank Tom and the rest of the team at StudioFortyThree for their tireless work and making ideas real for this Footpatrol x ASICS GEL-Saga project.
IPOS Design
IPOS Design are a retail design and brand agency who were on hand with creating the box for our Special Packaging relase for the first 25 in-store only consumers. The package heavily features the theme as well as a magazine, stickers and mini figurine.
Thank you to IPOS for generating the special box that accompanied the launch of the Footpatrol x ASICS GEL-Saga and also for creating the interactive in-store space.
