Author: Bradley Martinez
Following on from last weeks 350 V2 ‘Natural’, the duo follow up with by adding to this years halloween celebrations. Dubbed the ‘Calcite Glow, the duo add another clean iteration to the YEEZY line up.
Though what may seem like just a clean white upper, the ‘Calcite Glow’ comes to live in the darkness with subtle glow in the dark hints within the multi-toned re-engineered Primeknit and the herringbone rubber outsole offers unique design cues whilst providing improved traction.
One thing that’s always been a known fact of the Yeezy is there ability to be worn day in day out and provide optimum comfort. The 380 is no different with the new addition of stretch laces with silicone closure, allowing for greater elasticity and easy on and off wear.
To enter the ONLINE raffle, CLICK HERE!
To enter, you’re required to sign up via the above form, this WON’T be available in-store to sign up on.
To sign up to the Online raffle, you will be prompted to complete a pre-authorisation payment of the retail price of the product. This will be held until raffle completion. Those successful will have their raffle win posted out to the address entered during sign up. Those unsuccessful will see a return of their funds within 3-5 working days. The raffle is limited to one entry per household! Multiple entries will be cancelled!
In-store winners will be contacted via email informing them of their win and pick up dates. Due to current government laws surrounding Covid-19, the store is working on an appointment only basis. You will need to contact the store to make an appointment for a time during the stated pick up dates.
Is he a chef? Is he an instagram influencer? Well all we know is that he has quite a few followers and knows how to whip up some quick, easy and tasty grub!
Turning his passion for eating into something productive, Will spent his time during lockdown to create a food page to help keep track of dishes he’s made. With cooking being something anyone can do, naturally the stage was set for someone to fill a gap to make simple easy meals that anyone is able to do at home.
We reach out to Will ahead of our collaboration with adidas Originals to talk all things food and how his career took off the way it has.
Footpatrol: Will welcome to Footpatrol Discussions! How have you been?
Will: I’ve been good, not doing too badly considering these lockdown rules.
FP: For our food enthusiasts could you share with us a bit about your backstory on how you go to where you are now?
W: Well basically I liked cooking and I was cooking a lot at the beginning of 2020 so I set up an Instagram account to post pictures of the food I was making and then just as the (first) lockdown came I thought I’d try a video. It was fun so I did a couple more. Eventually I was furloughed so I spent my time making videos every day and then MOB decided to share them so here we are now!
FP: Has cooking been something that your family brought you up on or was this something you discovered a passion for yourself?
W: Not especially but I was always into food growing up. Everyone likes a good meal, but I wasn’t massively into cooking until I was a bit older. I probably started trying to cook properly when I was in secondary school but not in the slightly obsessive way I am with food now. During sixth form and uni I would cook a lot and try new things but when I moved into my current flat I think that’s when making dinner became the most important part of every day and I just got way more into it.
FP: What about the idea for WhatWillyCook? We have all been watching it and not only trying to make some of the dishes but had a laugh too, it’s very comical!
W: Many thanks! I guess the point is that it’s not a serious “how to” guide to cooking, you’re meant to be having fun whilst cooking at home and I know a lot of people find it really stressful, so I guess that’s the vibe. Saying that though the idea at first was not to do videos I just thought of that as a name for an account where I’d just post/keep track of nice bits I’d cooked. It’s just gotten a bit bigger than that, I’m glad it gives people a laugh though.
FP: Did you see this career path taking off the way it has for you?
W: Not even a little bit but I’ve just quit my job so I guess it is a career now, just going to see where it goes.
FP: As a big foodie yourself where do you get the inspiration for your dishes?
W: I follow good people who fill me with big old inspiration, there are so many people doing cool food stuff on Instagram, it gets a bad rep as a platform sometimes; with influencers posting teeth whitening products and all that jazz, but once you sift through the rubbish you get some real gems. I watch a lot of food programmes as well, especially stuff on YouTube. Matty Matheson’s YouTube bits are always great and there’s loads of rubbish quality Keith Floyd shows that I thoroughly enjoy. What that stuff lacks in picture quality it more than makes up for in just being fucking excellent.
FP: What about the videos and social content do you do that all yourself as well?
W: I do all of the bits myself yeah. My mate gave me a copy of Final Cut Pro and I just sort of worked out how to edit throughout the first few weeks of the lockdown. I like it that way, just being able to get everything done like the editing, effects and stuff. It will maybe get a bit better as I learn how to do things better but for now I think the phrase is “Lo-fi”.
FP: Do you have a significant time in your career that you always look back to and think about how good of a moment it was?
W: When big Ben from MOB first contacted me wanting me to do a video for them. That was a good moment because I’d followed them for ages and even emailed to see if I could work for them just because I wanted to work in food-media-production-whatever. They posted that first video and then I gained about three thousand followers in a day so I was kind of like “that’s nice, people like what I’m doing”.
FP: For any younger enthusiasts, do you have any words of wisdom you would pass on to them for encouragement?
W: Erm. I guess just if you have an idea to do something then just go for it and see what happens. Without the spare time in the lockdown this wouldn’t have happened so I feel like the circumstances were odd and often people don’t have so much spare time to work on this kind of thing. However it definitely wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t decided to make a video first and post it on the interwebs. So yeah, just go for it whatever it is unless it’s something really dangerous, in that case at least wear a helmet.
FP: Where do you see yourself in the future, would you like to take this into a high octane kitchen or keep going with the route that you’re currently following?
W: I don’t know if high octane kitchens are my thing. I like cooking in my little kitchen, just cracking on like that is good, but I would like a better (larger) kitchen. I’m working on doing a pop up thing for sure so people can sample my food. I want to keep it nice and relaxed, pre orders and all that. I like minimal stress levels at all times if possible when it comes to cooking, far from what you get mid-service in a restaurant kitchen.
FP: Well Will it’s been so good to meet you man! Before we let you go is there anything you would like to share to the Footpatrol readers?
W: I’d like to share my recipes and hope people give some of them a go and then in turn they can share pictures of their creations with me, and we can all be happy and full of nice food. That’s some premium sharing right there.
Based in the Pacific North-West, Columbia Sportswear began life way back in 1938 and since those first years, have been innovating and exploring the world of the outdoors.
With the lush forests, snow-covered mountains and rugged coastline on their doorstep, Columbia Sportswear have become experts within the world of outdoors, pioneering technologies for fellow outdoor explorers for around 80 years!
Though based in Soho, our love doesn’t just stop within the concrete jungle, we at Footpatrol love the outdoors and escaping from the hustle and bustle and getting back to nature. With plenty of lush spaces surrounding London, we headed deep into Epping Forest to explore some of Columbia’s latest offerings available now at Footpatrol.
With a tight selection of footwear now available at Footpatrol, we focussed our attention on the Columbia Sportswear Flow Borough silhouette. Available in both low and a mid, the Borough has been designed with both usability and function at the heart and most importantly, all conditions in mind. A waterproof upper has been teamed with a responsive cushioning meaning no terrain is out of reach.
Head over to the Footpatrol website now to shop the latest Columbia footwear!
The Converse Chuck Taylor All Star has become a classic and iconic expression of American culture and street culture but with this latest collaboration, Denim Tears founder Tremaine Emory wanted to examine how does its meaning transform when it reflects the Black experience and identity?
In an effort to help vote for change, Emory and Converse have teamed together to dress the upper of the Converse Chuck Taylor All Star in the African-American flag for the first time making a power statement from both parties.
Launching in-store and online on Thursday 29th October, sizes range from UK4 – UK12, priced between £95 – £100.
Dedicating most of his life to music Addiction has seen the industry change and mold itself into many different forms.
Having played with DnB legends such as Roni Size, Jumping Jack Frost and Groovrider. Addiction is not one to shy away from a heavy live show supplying ravers with lip curling drops that are hard to forget!
We reached out to the DnB powerhouse to discuss his music, footwear collection and also hear him throw down what’s to be the first Frequent Players exclusive Drum & Bass mix.
Footpatrol: The time has come to welcome DJ Addiction! How are you?
Addiction: Very well thank you guys…
FP: For those readers and listeners who haven’t heard you could you give us a background story about yourself and how you ended up getting to where you are now ?
Addiction: So it’s a bit of a long story but will keep it as brief as possible. I’ve always collected vinyl from a early age mainly Hip Hop and Electro to start with but as the dance music developed in to the birth of house music and a rave culture started to emerge with a ton of illegal warehouse parties the nation became hooked as did I. I then became more hooked into buying the music i was raving too at the weekends so going to all the on point london record stores like Black Market records and Section 5 on thursdays to buys all this new music that we all wanted to rave to become the new normal, at this point becoming a dj seemed to most natural thing to do, it was the best thing i’d done to date. I then hustled to buy my first set Technics 2010`s and started the long road to getting some gigs, played some great early raves alongside some wicked djs on the circuit at the time which helped me get my first agent at Grooveconnection London alongside the likes of Fabio,Grooverider, Jumping Jack Frost, Bryan G and many more. This became a game changer and fast forward to birth of Drum and Bass / Jungle I get the first London Residency @ Speed in the Mars Bar club soho ( do ya research ) a groundbreaking club that Fabio and LTJ Bukem Headed up, from there came the second regular spot @ Movement in Bar Rhumba on Shaftesbury Avenue with Bryan G and Jumping Jack Frost , Roni Size and many more. Next thing to do was to get in the studio and start making the music I became affiliated with which led to releases on Moving Shadow, Goodlooking, Creative Source and Hospital Records. The rest is history and here I am still pushing the sound both on the decks and in the studio….
FP: What drew you to Drum & Bass that made you decide this was the genre you wanted to play with?
Addiction: Good Question, initially the vibes and the tempo got me hooked, at the time its was fresh new music with no rules produced mainly by young producers in makeshift studios or bedrooms, it was music from the streets with passion, the major music industry did not have a clue what was going on and I loved that, it represented the times and the attitude of the young Producer / DJ and what the underground scene wanted.
FP: In the early days of your career, were there any DJs that influenced you?
Addiction: To be fair a few djs got me interested in the early days, Top Buzz, Grooverider, Fabio, Sasha, Carl Cox it was such a melting pot of talent playing great music it was hard not to appreciate every dj doing their thing.
FP: We are super excited to hear your mix, is there anything we should know about before we listen?
Addiction: The mix I’ve put together showcases the best of today’s dnb talent inc the likes of : Goldie, Lsides, Dogger & Mindstate , Bungle, The Sauce and of course some Carlito and Addiction exclusives that will be released in the very near future…..
FP: With the difficulties lockdown has brought to us when it comes to nights out, how have you been keeping yourself busy?
Addiction: Yes things are very difficult at the moment to say the least. I’ve been full on in the studio these days with my producing partner Carlito making sure we have enough material to release ready for when things hopefully get back to normal and I play the clubs and festivals.
FP: Being Footpatrol we have to ask the question about your shoe game! Are you much of a collector yourself?
Addiction: Yes I am to be fair, always had a passion for sneakers that started with Jordan 1, 3 and 5s but it really kicked in when I started skateboarding and Nike released the Nikesb dunks, so primarily my collection is all SB with some classic Jordans in there somewhere, last big pick ups included the Travis Scotts, just wish it was easier to pick them up these days, used to able to walk into my local and get the pair I wanted easy. I can remember I needed the then 1990 new Jordan 5 Black OG and walked into my local Nike store no queue and bought the Uk7 no hassle no drama and no raffle lol. If only I could do that now for any Nike SB dunk or Jordan 1…
FP: What got you into footwear?
Addiction: Sports mainly, played Basketball as a kid at school and then got into Skateboarding so I always wanted the latest new sneakers. The collection just grew from there really…
FP: Do you still have much of the collection now?
Addiction: Yer not too shabby, i’ve got some great deadstock SBs and Jordans.
FP: Top 3?
Im Wearing at the moment
Nike SB Mafia Low
Jordan 1 OG ” Gym Red”
Nike SB Money Cat Lows
FP: Addiction, it’s been great to meet you and speak to you. Before we let you go is there anything you want to share with the Footpatrol and Frequent Players readers?
Addiction: Yer, We are going through some trying times at the moment and things are all a bit strange and uncertain, so id just liked to say to everyone, stay positive and stay safe, I’m sure it will get better for all of us at some point…
In recent years, Nike have taken on the Halloween theme and dressed some of their most iconic sneakers in a host of spider web and creepy-crawly graphics. Keeping this tradition for 2020, Nike have expanded on their ever growing series of Skelton Air Force 1’s with this pumpkin like orange colour way.
What began with a super clean all white iteration in 2018, soon got a lot more spookier with an all black version for Halloween 2019. Wanting to trump that for 2020, Nike look towards a typical colour within Halloween trivia, orange.
Much like those previous two iterations, this latest orange colour way comes with the anatomical foot graphics on both the lateral/medial walls, making their way on to the shoe inserts also. If this bright, pumpkin orange didn’t stand out enough, the midsole is finished in a full length glow in the dark, helping you stand out in both daylight and night time.
Though we can’t go trick or treating this year, make sure your Halloween outfit is finished off with these!
To enter the LONDON IN-STORE raffle, CLICK HERE!
To enter the PARIS IN-STORE raffle, CLICK HERE!
To enter, you’re required to sign up via the above form, this WON’T be available in-store to sign up on.
In-store winners will be contacted via email informing them of their win and pick up dates. Due to current government laws surrounding Covid-19, the store is working on an appointment only basis. You will need to contact the store to make an appointment for a time during the stated pick up dates.
All proceeds will be donated to Soho-based charity House of St Barnabas. The House of St Barnabas is a social enterprise and charity that works to support people affected by homelessness back into long-term employment. Their vision is of a future where lasting good work, a secure home and a supportive network are a reality for those affected by homelessness. HOSB works to provide people with the support and training they need to find lasting paid employment.
To find out more about House of St Barnabas and how your purchase can help make a difference please head over to hosb.org.uk
To enter the ONLINE (UK only) raffle, CLICK HERE!
Over the years we have had the opportunity to build a strong partnership with adidas, working on a number of collaborative projects together. In January, we were invited to the adidas headquarters in Herzo, Germany where we sat down with the product team building a concept and design for our iteration of the iconic adidas basketball shoe, Forum.
With its previously unheard of $100 price tag, the Forum had been making headlines both on and off the court ever since its introduction back in 1984. With top pros and consumers all around the world all wanting this latest on court technology, the Forum earned its right as a status symbol.
Known for his now iconic ZX range, the Forum was the brainchild of a certain Jaques Chassaing. Known for these technological achievements, the Forum was no different. An aesthetically iconic sneaker, this shoe was born from the needs of the wearer first, studying every type of player understanding the need for support.
Wanting to bring in a subtle design approach to this iconic sneaker, we built on our love for interior spaces. This is something that’s always played a key role within the history of Footpatrol. Using our current store interior as a source of inspiration, we wanted to replicate bringing this same clean, refined execution to our Forum design. Much like the elevated, utilitarian design structure of our retail spaces, we stripped our iteration back to two core materials – leather and suede, enabling us to explore ways of being more purposeful with our design. The spectrum of grey hues seen in our interior space from the GPR Cladding inside the hut, to the Micro-Cement walls in the open area was a key design feature we wanted to include in the overall design.
The Footpatrol Forum 84 Low is made up of a hairy, medium nap suede & pigskin nubuck upper, with premium leather accents throughout. We wanted to maximise the use of materials we were presented with and did so by mismatching the material blocking on each foot, giving the shoe a unique look & feel. The metallic silver leather accent at the fore-front of the shoe was added as a reference to those materials used on a well-known 80s adidas running model. The ‘Footpatrol’ name and word ‘Family’ adorns the ankle straps printed in a Metallic Gold finish. Further gold Footpatrol branding features on the lateral side of the right foot next to the three-stripe adidas branding. Gasmask branding is featured in debossed form on the lateral heel of the left foot, and on the right pigskin nubuck tongue label.
We also added a couple easter egg features to our Forum design honouring one of our most coveted previous adidas collaborations. A separate pair of insoles are included inside the box featuring an all-over print graphic of Footpatrol staff signatures
Limited to only 300 pairs worldwide, each individually numbered with the same gold metallic finish seen throughout the shoe and will only be available via a raffle on the Footpatrol website coming soon!
Over the next week we will be representing three local London creatives from across different industries from food, music and fashion. Each individual has produced a specific piece of content for the launch and will be telling their story on our blog, giving them a platform to express their passions and points of view and how they can pass on any knowledge and inspiration to the next generation.
The Road Warrior scavenges innovation from many different places: basketball, training, running, outdoor apparel. The goal was to build a piece of footwear that can thrive in urban environments. All of these performance innovations live in harmony, providing comfort, protection and durability.
The Road Warrior references the pioneering design of the 2-hour-marathon-breaking Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Next% and the energy return of the Nike Air Zoom BB NXT. The open floating heel borrows from early Nike Shox prototypes, but shifts from the “boing boing” effect of the pillars to incorporate double-stacked Zoom pods and double underfoot plates.
We didn’t want to sacrifice stability. That’s why the Road Warrior re-imagines a traditional Japanese split-toe cage (commonly used in construction and road work boots) for a back-to-basics barefoot stance.
Launching online on Friday 23rd October (Available online from 08:00AM BST), sizes range from UK6 – UK12, priced at £435.
With the revisit of the 2002 silhouette form New Balance’s famed 1000 series, the silhouette faces its first collaboration and the first between New Balance and Salehe Bembury.
Since making the move from NYC to LA, Bembury found a new found love for the outdoors which has paved its way for this last collaboration, bringing a host of trail inspired materials and colours to this classic NB silhouette.
With this new found love of the outdoors, the colour way for this collaboration was heavily inspired by the Antelope Canyon’s colour palette, bringing a sense of depth of field to silhouette with a host of orange hues and mixture of materials including hair suede heavy mesh.
To celebrate this upcoming launch, we sat down with Taylor Canby, the Creative Design Manager at New Balance. Catch the interview below before the raffle links for the Salehe Bembury x New Balance 2002R.
Footpatrol: Hi Taylor. To get things started, please could you tell us about your current role at New Balance and your own personal background? What was your journey to becoming the Design Manager for the Asia-Pacific territory?
Taylor Canby: I grew up in a town a short drive from New Balance headquarters where I started my career as a footwear designer. Early on I travelled frequently to Asia on development trips working directly with factories troubleshooting and putting thefinishing touches on designs before going to production. The environment, the culture, and the experience of it all was just so captivating. Eventually, I had theopportunity to move to Southern China to do this day in and day out, designing and working with the factories directly. After a couple years of that I was asked to be part of a product team based out of Hong Kong specifically focused on addressing the needs of the emerging APAC market. I jumped at the opportunity and have been in Hong Kong for over 10 years now. My job over the past few years has evolved a bit. I now manage all global lifestyle SMU’s but continue to work on collabs and designs specifically aimed at the APAC market.
FP: The New Balance name is synonymous with craftsmanship and premium materials, especially within the UK. I think many of us over here tend tothink of Asia taking more of a focus on innovation or technology. Drawing on your own experience, how does the brand perception of New Balance differ in the Asia-Pacific region? How much influence does this have on the product you release?
TC: I think in the eyes of the consumer the brand perception isn’t that different here in APAC. Of course there are some differences in taste and style but consumers still pay a lot of attention to craftsmanship and appreciate the use of premium materials. That being said, living and working here has had and profound influence on how I work. The largest of which has come from working with designers in Japan. Their hyper appreciation for craftsmanship and extra attention they pay to the small details rapidly became part of my process.
FP: When you’re working for a brand with such strong heritage, does the past inform the present when you work on a design such as the 2002? Or do you try to approach things with a clear head and a blank canvas?
TC: I haven’t learned how to clear my head, even while meditating. When working on a project like the 2002 or any bring back model you have to approach it with respect. You want to ensure that you do justice to the original designers intent. This one was especially challenging because the original designer, Andrew Nyssen is still at the company and it was originally made in USA. I scrutinized over the shape of each part literally down to the stitching margin.
FP: Outside of archival reference points and NB’s formidable back catalogue, what else is important to your creative process? Do you look at any other personal interests, like music or art, for fresh ideas?
TC: Music, art, movies and coffee are all good sources to help give fuel to the creative process. Seems impossible for me to pinpoint one thing that drives it. I believe all Designers are inherently preceptive. We are always looking around and absorbing what’s happening in the world around us. I am lucky to live in such a vibrant city. There is no lack of energy, motion and things to grab your attention. Well… Maybe that’s it. It’s my environment, the city that provides the fresh ideas.
FP: How involved do you personally get beyond the design process? Is the marketing and communications side of things something that you like to participate in?
TC: I tend not to get involved too much beyond the design process. Though, given the opportunity I love being able to provide more context to any design when necessary. Besides, my marketing teammates are great at what they do.
FP: How does it feel to see a project go from the drawing board to peoples’ feet? When you’ve worked so closely with a design, does that feeling of satisfaction still exist when the finished product hits the street?
TC: Even after all these years I feel a strong sense of pride seeing people wearing shoes I’ve worked on. The biggest joy I get is when it’s a shoe I worked on years ago and I can see they’ve kept it in great condition. That’s when you know you got it right and they really appreciate the design.
FP: Taking a moment to reflect on the current pandemic situation, how have you responded as a brand? We’re hearing of difficulties in being able to source high-quality materials: will this affect or inspire your future designs? If so, how do you address these challenges without visibly cutting corners when working on such top-tier product?
TC: Yeah, New Balance as with everyone around the world has had its fair share of challenges with this pandemic. As you might know, in the beginning of the year we stopped making shoes in our US factories and converted the line to make Masks for a period of time. There was and still is a lot we are challenged with as we navigate through this pandemic. Without a doubt this is having an impact on how we design but due to any material issues for the moment. Fortunately, even with our setbacks and delays we haven’t had to cut corners to keep making our shoes.
FP: What’s next for you, both personally and as a brand? Is there anything coming up that we should be keeping an eye out for?
TC: There are several collabs on the 2002 coming out of Asia that will be dropping in the upcoming months and a fresh model the beginning of the year. Don’t sleep.
Talking of Colabs, please find below all raffle information for the Salehe Bembury x New Balance 2002.
To enter the ONLINE raffle – CLICK HERE!
To enter the LONDON IN-STORE raffle – CLICK HERE!
To enter the PARIS IN-STORE raffle – CLICK HERE!
To enter, you’re required to sign up via the above form, this WON’T be available in-store to sign up on.
To sign up to the Online raffle, you will be prompted to complete a pre-authorisation payment of the retail price of the product. This will be held until raffle completion. Those successful will have their raffle win posted out to the address entered during sign up. Those unsuccessful will see a return of their funds within 3-5 working days. The raffle is limited to one entry per household! Multiple entries will be cancelled!
In-store winners will be contacted via email informing them of their win and pick up dates. Due to current government laws surrounding Covid-19, the store is working on an appointment only basis. You will need to contact the store to make an appointment for a time during the stated pick up dates.
A firm favourite within the adidas YEEZY collection, the 350 v2 is still showing face in a host of new colour ways.
The YEEZY BOOST 350 V2 ‘Natural’ features an upper composed of multi-toned re-engineered Primeknit, finished off in a clean white upper similar to that of the ‘Static’. This latest’Natural’ iteration however, uses it’s post-dyed monofilament side stripe woven into the upper to break up this stark white appearance with a sandy hue, whilst also including hints of reflective yarns knitted into the quadrant of the upper above the monofilament window.
Slight updates see’s the arrival of a set of stretch laces with a silicone closure for easy on and off wear and comes equipped with a second set of standard laces.
To enter the ONLINE raffle – CLICK HERE!
To enter the LONDON IN-STORE raffle – CLICK HERE!
To enter the PARIS IN-STORE raffle – CLICK HERE!
To enter, you’re required to sign up via the above form, this WON’T be available in-store to sign up on.
To sign up to the Online raffle, you will be prompted to complete a pre-authorisation payment of the retail price of the product. This will be held until raffle completion. Those successful will have their raffle win posted out to the address entered during sign up. Those unsuccessful will see a return of their funds within 3-5 working days. The raffle is limited to one entry per household! Multiple entries will be cancelled!
In-store winners will be contacted via email informing them of their win and pick up dates. Due to current government laws surrounding Covid-19, the store is working on an appointment only basis. You will need to contact the store to make an appointment for a time during the stated pick up dates.
