After an array of sought-after collaborations with New Balance and cool cachet that grows by the day, French favorite Casablanca used their own backyard to unveil a trainer that’s all their own.
Last week, designers, athletes, and artists descended on Paris Fashion Week with the world back open. Though the likes of Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, and Kenzo continued to recreate the craft, the hometown heroes at Casablanca continued to crush.
Known for their silk shirts, vivid prints, and beautiful lens on luxury vacation garb, Casablanca mixed the Moroccan motifs they’ve become famous for with Wild West wears akin to Megan Thee Stallion or Lil Nas X. Not only did the brand spread their wings in regard to outerwear and inspiration, they impressed with accessories and new entries to footwear.
Along the highlight reel of looks came a preview of the laceless Casa Sport Sneaker.
Standing out amongst other entries in footwear more in line with tennis traits by comparison, the Casa Sport Sneaker signals turn of the millennium vibes similar to that of the Adidas Yeezy Boost 700 MNVN. A dip-dye upper is reminiscent of 1998’s Nike Air Max Plus, while the zip-up styling mirrors that of 1999’s shrouded Nike Air Sunder Max. Around the edges, chunky midsole tooling is derivative of the dad shoe craze that swept the latter ’10s, while golden hardware, lush materials, and pastel tones play to the brand’s core ethos.
Aside from the intrigue regarding this new shoe, one has to wonder, could Casa Sport be a diffusion line or sub-label from Casablanca? As the brand grows, this nostalgic look leans closer to active-inspired sportswear, steering away from country club classy and registering more as an homage to Nike, Nautica, and Polo Sport offerings of the late ’90s. The bigger picture perspective is unclear at this time, but exciting in either event.
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As Hypebeast notes, today’s closer look at the kicks comes shortly after the Paris presentation of the previously mentioned SS23 Futuro Optimisto collection. Though the depth and diversity of the offerings impressed, this dive into footwear is somewhat uncharted territory for the brand. While Casablanca has collaborated with New Balance on a variety of lifestyle silhouettes in recent years, this proves the first formal footwear foray from the brand by way of their own design department from top to bottom.
Seen in detail on Instagram by art director Stevie Grimes, the pair previously popped up on Casablanca creative director Charaf Tajer’s feet as he saluted the audience at the end of his recent runway show. Tajer himself is no stranger to subverting ideas attached to luxury, streetwear, and sport, having co-founded Parisian powerhouse Pigalle with Stéphane Ashpool, well known for their blend of basketball and art.
At the moment, release details regarding the Casablanca Sport Sneaker are undisclosed. Based on the presentation, one would assume a Spring/Summer 2023 launch. If that holds true, it will hit high-end retailers around the same time Nike nods to the past with bring-backs of the “Gold Bullet” Air Max 97 as well as the “Big Bubble” Air Max 1.
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