Kith’s popular Monday Program readies the (RF)² partnership through collaborative takes on THE ROGER Clubhouse Mid and THE ROGER Pro.
Currently, the Kith store in Soho houses the head of a tyrannosaurus rex in fossil form, but trust, founder Ronnie Fieg isn’t living in the past.
Coming off a collaboration with The American Museum Of Natural History as part of their celebrated Monday Program, the boutique brand will transform from dinosaur depository into sport spectacle through the introduction of (RF)² by Ronnie Fieg & Roger Federer for On Running.
Famously, the Federer footwear story dates back to before his 1998 pro turn with an endorsement deal he signed with Nike in 1994.
Over the course of 24 years with the Swoosh, the Swiss star became the toast of tennis by winning an array of tournaments and arriving as a style icon.
In 2018 when his contract expired with Nike, Federer signed a 10-year apparel deal with Uniqlo for a reported $300 million.
In 2019, he became a shareholder at Switzerland-based On Running, where he scored his own signature tennis shoe. Since 2020, On has sold THE ROGER PRO to storied success.
Teaming with Fieg for a new partnership, this launch notably sports the infamous RF logo seen first on Federer’s Nike apparel, designed years ago by his wife, Mirka.
While the partnership between the Queens designer and Swiss tennis star may seem like a surprise to their shared collective Instagram following of over 13 million, it’s been alluded to before. Listeners of Boardroom’s Out of Office Podcast were privy to early information on this partnership.
Back on June 15, 2022 on Fieg’s 40th birthday, he spoke on his affinity for Federer with Boardroom’s own Rich Kleiman.
“There are some things that I really love and am passionate about that I do for me. Tennis has become one of those activities,” Fieg told Kleiman. “[Tennis has] always been the most underrated in regard to fashion and I think it’s time to put that at the forefront.”
So, how does the other RF play into that?
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“Roger is probably one of my favorite humans on the planet,” Fieg continued. “Let alone one of the greatest athletes of all-time and my favorite tennis player of all-time and, in my opinion, the greatest tennis player of all-time. [His style] is so effortless. It’s like a real life [James] Bond situation. He’s such a gem of a guy, too. What he is interested in and how he sees this world is very inspiring. Getting to know him was incredible. That story is going to be epic and I’m looking forward to that coming soon.”
The time is now.
With this banner box-set drop, Fieg’s fandom of Federer and personal love of tennis come together through his excellence in design.
“I loved the silhouette immediately,” Fieg wrote on Instagram. “I thought it was the strongest model they had made thus far and I wanted to support it in a major way, which led to Kith becoming the exclusive retailer for THE ROGER Pro. After its launch, On called me and said Roger had heard about how much I loved the shoe and wanted to discuss a partnership.”
The partnership, which Fieg calls “very personal,” plays off their shared love of tennis as well as their identical initials. Taking two years to craft, the end result is a two-shoe box set similar in pairing to Jordan Brand‘s beloved Countdown Packs, but more premium in packaging and elevated in execution.
First, THE ROGER Clubhouse Mid sees tennis through a lifestyle lens, designed by Federer himself. The ’90s-inspired silhouette still packs performance perks like On’s CloudTec® cushioning, Speedboard® engineering, and Zero Gravity midsole foam. It’s all finished in vegan leather rubbed in red clay, telling the tale of Federer’s time on the minor-league pro circuits.
Next, THE ROGER Pro builds on Federer’s famous court shoe, sporting the same ingredients as the mid-top take though fitted for playing tennis all day long. The performance pair is packaged with a bag of clay and instruction manual for customization, adding appeal to those who play. Lastly, Fieg has signed each Pro while Federer has autographed each Clubhouse Mid.
The unveil video, shot in Federer’s Switzerland, takes it all to the clay court to set the story. As expected, the second chapter coincides with where Fieg is from.
Timing out with the US Open, currently taking place in Fieg’s Queens, look for THE ROGER RF2 Set to release on Monday, Aug. 29 at all Kith locations for $550 USD. Additionally, pairs will launch online at Kith and through the Kith app at 11 a.m. EST.
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