A Sneakerhead's Guide to High-Fashion Designers

High-fashion and sneaker culture are coming to a crossroads, and here's what sneakerheads need to know.

There's been a string of recent high-fashion collaborations, the sneaker industry has been making the best of top-tier design talent, and it's wielded interesting results. High-fashion designers enter a sneaker collaboration with a different mindset than the average sneakerhead, which makes the finished product something that can be desired by both people who sit front row at Fashion Week and those who hashtag their Instagrams with #complexkicks. Collaborations range from pricey menswear to Japanese style gurus. And sneakerheads should know all about them. From their clothes to sneakers, here's A Sneakerhead's Guide to High-Fashion Designers.

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Yohji Yamamoto

Collaborated With: adidas
What They're Known For: Oversized silhouettes. Pioneering mixing sportswear with fashion, a little line called Y-3.

When it comes to high-fashion/sneaker collaborations, Yohji Yamamoto's partnership with adidas is the benchmark that all designers should shoot for. First launched in 2003, Yamamoto and adidas came together to form the brand Y-3, which allows Yamamoto to work on sportswear and for adidas to boost the brand's ranking in the fashion industry. When Kanye first signed to adidas, industry insiders assumed that it would be a good match because of what Yamamoto was able to do with the brand. Y-3, though, isn't Yamamoto's first venture into fashion. He's been blessing people with avant-garde designs since he debuted first collection in Tokyo in 1977. Fashion comes and goes in cyclical patterns, Yamamoto has been of the few things that have remained consistent.

Marc Jacobs

Collaborated With: Vans
What They're Known For: Creating a grunge collection for Perry Ellis in 1992. Running multiple labels. Making the Kanye West x Louis Vuitton sneaker collaboration happen.

Marc Jacobs might be the one high-fashion designer that non-fashion fans could still recognize. He's everywhere. The former Louis Vuitton creative director runs two eponymous labels: Marc Jacobs and Marc by Marc Jacobs. When he's not getting his storefront tagged by Kidult, and then making a T-shirt about the situation - he's tried his hands at sneaker collaborations too. No, we're not talking about the Kanye West x Louis Vuitton collection that he put together. Jacobs has worked with Vans on several sneakers - most notably patent leather Sk8 His and Old Skools which released in 2006. Is there a hat that Jacobs doesn't wear?

Hussein Chalayan

Collaborated With: Puma
What They're Known For: Outside the box ideas that push the boundaries of fashion

If guys aren't too experienced with Hussein Chalayan's designs, that's because he only focuses on women's designs for his eponymous label. His boundary-breaking ideas have been exhibited in shows like Spring/Summer 2007, where he made animatronic dresses that transformed. It's also because Chalayan has been focused on working with Puma Black Label, where he serves as creative director. His designs are more about contorting what's given to him than making the print of the sneaker come to life. Puma's back catalog is given clean makeups with exuberant straps and heel shapes. It also doens't hurt that Chalayan put together sportswear that makes the collection flow.

Maison Martin Margiela

Collaborated With: Converse
What They're Known For: High-end menswear, German army trainer sneakers, designing masks for Kanye West.

A mainstay in hip-hop references over the past several years, 'heads aren't completely unfamiliar with Belgian fashion house Maison Martin Margiela. Last year saw the release of the Margiela x Converse collection—a series of '70s Chuck Taylors and Jack Purcells and painted in crackling white paint. But this wasn't the first time 'heads had paid attention to a Margiela sneaker. The brand's version of the German army trainer is, arguably, one of its most-known items to date. But outside of its sneakers, H&M collection, and masks made for Kanye West, Margiela is a, surprisingly, easy-to-wear label. It's a menswear label that's rooted in making wardrobe staples with forward-enough silhouettes. Who said that all high fashion had to be tough to pull off?

Undercover

Collaborated With: Nike
What They're Known For: Bringing a punk energy to menswear and athletics.

It's cliche for a fashion designer to say they're inspired by punk rock, but Undercover's Jun Takahashi really is. It only takes a look at his ongoing work with Nike, under the Gyakusou label (and smaller collaborations, too), to realize Takahashi is all about taking items everyone could use and turning them into rebel statements. Running gear is pretty utilitarian and tech-oriented, but Takahashi is partly responsible for making it a new trend amongst stylish folks. The Gyakusou garments and sneakers still functioned as well as ones strictly made for sport, but they made running lookbooks a real thing. Athletic apparel isn't the only thing that Takahashi focuses on, though. Undercover is rooted in menswear, but the cuts and details are distinct to Takahashi's Japanese flair. Let's be honest, Japan, usually, does things better and Undercover is living proof.

 

Riccardo Tisci

Collaborated With: Nike
What They're Known For: Taking Givenchy from a French couture brand to something that muddles the line between streetwear and high fashion. Designing clothes for Kanye West and Kim Kardashian.

There's been a renaissance going on in high fashion, and that's thanks to the growing acceptance of hip-hop amongst designers. One of the designers who's at the forefront of this movement is Riccardo Tisci, who took over Givenchy in 2005. By now, the brand's "Rottweiler" print has been bootlegged and knocked off across the board, but Givenchy continues to push forward. Whether it's making Kanye West a custom leather kilt or outfitting Kim Kardashian with a dress for the Met Gala, Tisci's designs stay in the news. Then his collaboration with Nike happened. No one knew what it would look like at first, but when it became known that it was a pair of Air Force 1s, albeit super luxury, it became the shining example of where sneaker culture could go. Had high-fashion designers worked on sneaker culture staples before? Yes. But Tisci's rework of the AF1 - and bringing it to new heights, literally - felt authentic. It was no different than him bringing a new aesthetic to Givenchy. It was 100 percent Tisci.

White Mountaineering

Collaborated With: Saucony
What They're Known For: Menswear for the urban explorer with cropped cuts.

Outdoorsmen are a steezy bunch. White Mountaineering has taken the styles that grew up in the wilderness and reinvented them for guys who are more likely to wear them through the city streets. The Japanese brand makes proper use of clothes that have historical functions and tailors them to its own vision. This point of view is expressed through an ongoing collaboration with Saucony. At times, a high-fashion collaboration can go over the edge, but no one will be mad at a Courageous runner with premium suede.

Engineered Garments

Collaborated With: New Balance, Vans
What They're Known For: Vintage-inspired workwear that's taken up a notch with quality fabrics, great construction, and more pockets than any man will ever need.

If #menswear bros are talking about "jawnz," then there's a high likelihood that Engineered Garments is part of the discussion. Designed by Daiki Suzuki, EG is a Japanese brand that borrows from American workwear and menswear motifs (chore coats, blazers, chambrays, etc.) and changes them through minor details related to fit and the materials used. For its sneaker collaborations, EG has the same idea in mind. Its two lone collabs have been with New Balance and Vans, and what makes them noticeable is the application of mismatch materials—a wabi-sabi vibe Suzuki first tried with benchmade shoes by Tricker's. With New Balance, EG took the 993 and used different shades of suede on the right and left sneakers. And the Vans it designed didn't fall far from that design ethos, either. The label took the Slip-On and gave one foot a smooth leather finish, while the other foot sported a nappy suede. These are the ideas and concepts that make high-fashion/sneaker collaborations flourish.


Pigalle

Collaborated With: Nike
What They're Known For: Pioneering the intersection between Paris' couture past and streetwear-infused present.

It would be easy to call Pigalle the "French Supreme" and leave it at that. But the brand's first collaboration with Nike, on two Air Force 1s, is the epitome of where the brand is headed. Pigalle is easily recognized for its logo T-shirts and sweatshirts, but the brand, ran by Stephane Ashpool, has excited style heads through its collections that focus around bomber jackets, all-over prints, and making ponchos a completely necessary piece of outerwear. What makes Pigalle function so well is that it doesn't pigeonhole itself into any one category. Its designs are just as acceptable to sneakerheads as they are to runway enthusiasts.

Mihara Yasuhiro

Collaborated With: Puma
What They're Known For: Drawing the fine line between what's too much and what's just right.

It takes a lot of skill and mastery to attempt abstract designs. Mihara Yasuhiro, who designs for Puma underneath its Black Label, has been designing footwear for quite some time, and his iterations show just enough restraint. The same can be seen his fashion collections. His clothes aren't for everyone, but to the right person— it's what they've been searching for.


Comme des Garcons

Collaborated With: New Balance, Converse, Nike
What They're Known For: Next-level garments for diehard fans, accessible staples with a heart icon anyone can wear, zip wallets, and Supreme collaborations.

Rei Kawakubo, the eccentric designer behind Comme des Garcons, has been on a roll. At 71, Kawaukbo is more relevant than ever. And her brand, CDG, has effortlessly worked its way into the heart of the streetwear conversation, thanks to its many sub-lines like CDG PLAY, CDG SHIRT, and CDG BLACK. Its collaborations with Supreme and Vans sell out instantly, and its ongoing partnership with Converse can be picked up at stores from J.Crew to Barneys to one of their flagship Dover Street Market shops. As high-profile as CDG's collabs with Converse and Vans are, its work with Nike and New Balance is rarer to come by and not beasted on by the same consumers. Still, as challenging as CDG's designs can be at times, its sneaker collabs are a good meeting ground and introduction to Kawakubo's more daring collections.

 

Junya Watanabe

Collaborated With: Nike, New Balance, Converse, PF Flyers
What They're Known For: Patchworked garments, re-worked pieces, reinterpreting American and British menswear.

Junya Watanabe is a trailblazer when it comes to high-fashion/sneaker collaborations. The Japanese designer first worked with Nike in 1999 on a Zoom Haven, and his following works have been unique to Watanabe's vision. His work on the Haven was just the start of things to come. In 2000, Watanabe worked on a runner with Nike, the Air Kukini, but one his most important collabs to date would be the distressing of classic Nike runners. This idea didn't come together by accident. Watanabe's designs are rooted in Americana. But, there's something different about Watanabe's sneaker collaborations. Where a lot of fashion designers create sneakers that pop in real life, Watanabe's sneakers are understated. They're meant for those who know, and not to impress the passerby, sort of like their own best-kept secret for stylish dudes to keep to themselves.

Alexander McQueen

Collaborated With: Puma
What They're Known For: Impeccably tailored clothes that don't play by the old Savile Row rules.

The late Alexander McQueen was known for outlandish designs that are well-received by those who live for fashion. His label lives on, and thanks to designers Sarah Burton and Pina Ferlisi, and is most regarded for its women's designs that have been brought into the spotlight by celebrities such as Lady Gaga, and the dress Kate Middleton wore to the royal wedding, but its sneaker line with Puma is seen as a meeting point for sneakerheads and high-fashion connoisseurs to converge. Much of the line's sneakers take from Puma's classic silhouettes, but, in 2009, McQueen and Puma worked together on a Ribcage and runner, and the results were great.

Mark McNairy

Collaborated With: adidas Originals, Pro-Keds, Timberland
What They're Known For: Menswear that gives the middle finger to the idea of dressing conservatively. Well-made shoes with bright soles. Making a cape for Cam'ron.

When it comes to traditional menswear, it's ingrained in the clothes worn by British dudes well before 1950 and styles that took flight on Ivy League campuses. Mark McNairy knows these worlds well. He was a designer at trad brands J.Press and Southwick. McNairy's name, though, became known as he took benchmade English shoes and boots and gave them bright soles and wrote "Fuck Off" on the soles. Surprisingly, however, when McNairy was tapped by adidas, he kept things rather tame. The sneakers still had his nickname, McNasty, on them, but they were focused on simple adidas silhouettes. But, in retrospect, McNairy has kept things rather ordinary when designing a collaborative sneaker with a brand. The products he made with Pro Keds and Timberland were simple, too—which lets his fans know that he still can deliver a product that is more about details than a declarative statement.

Public School

Collaborated With: Generic Man
What They're Known For: Streetwear staples done in high-end fabrics with a gritty gothic appeal.

There's been an undeniable buzz around Public School since it showed its breakthrough Fall/Winter 2013 at New York Fashion Week in February 2013. Since then, the duo of Maxwell Osborne and Dao-Yi Chow, who met each other while working at Sean John, have won the CFDA Swarovski Award for Best Menswear Designer of the Year. The label's success is no mistake. It makes next-level garments that aren't intimidating through making use of leather jackets, suiting, and tons of layers. Both fans of '90s hip-hop and basketball culture, Osborne and Chow collaborated with the New York Knicks for a capsule collection with their diffusion line Black Apple, but the sneakerheads with more mature tastes geeked out over a shoe in their Spring/Summer 2014 collection: a Generic Man collab high-top that takes the Air Jordan XII into luxe territory. It's hard to say no to a black and white sneaker that riffs on childhood themes.

Rick Owens

Collaborated With: adidas
What They're Known For: A high-end goth look that champions dark colors, long layers, and exaggerated silhouettes.

Street goth really took flight as a trend in 2013. Streetwear heads explored a darker, brooding aesthetic that revolved around clothes with asymmetrical and elongated fits—in all-black, of course. The trend, however, didn't come from nowhere. Thanks to rappers such as A$AP Rocky and Kanye West, Rick Owens became a buzzword amongst the hip-hop community. 'Heads were ready to experiment with new silhouettes, and Owens' monotone garments made it an easy transition. That's why, in 2014, a Rick Owens x adidas collaboration was the focus attention and scrutiny in sneaker culture. People either love or hate Rick Owens, mostly because his designs aren't for the faint of heart. The sneakers he put out for his eponymous label, the Geobasket, gained acclaim because they were a cartoonish version of the Nike Dunk. Nike noticed, which is why the Swoosh-like design on the side has since been changed into something totally different. The people that love the sneakers are champions of Owens' aesthetic, and that's a cult that seems to be growing steadily, now that adidas is helping push that vision into the mainstream.

Takahiro Miyashita

Collaborated With: adidas Originals, Converse
What They're Known For: Flowing silhouettes, crazy construction, exhorbitant prices.

Takahiro Miyashita may have moved on from his label, number (n)ine and is now working on The Soloist, but his sneaker collaborations have been great. For example, the suede that Miyashita chose for his work with the side-laced Converse Odessa is so hairy, it changes the sneaker all together. The sneakers he works on aren't too busy, and they're a complementing piece to Miyashita's drapey clothes that take a serious style risk to pull off. But even the most purest of sneakerheads can appreciate Miyashita's attention to quality.

Jeremy Scott

Collaborated With: adidas Originals
What They're Known For: Pieces that are loud, conceptual, and insert Scott's commentary.

If it wasn't for Jeremy Scott's collection with adidas Originals, sneakerheads would not have laced up teddy bears on their feet. But Scott's wild and tongue-in-cheek designs - he's best known for putting wings on an adidas hi-top - aren't just contained to sneakers. Just take a look at his first collection with Moschino, of which Scott is now creative director. It takes Mochino's logo and turned garments into fast-food and junk-food wrappers and packaging—most notably Scott's take on McDonald's. Scott, however, isn't just a high-fashion designer making a quick run with sneakers. His ongoing collection with adidas Originals was introduced in 2010, but Scott first worked with adidas in 2002 on a money-print Forum Hi. If a designer can get regular dudes to wear cheetah-print sneakers complete with a fuzzy tail on them, then they're definitely succeeding at what they do.

 

Missoni

Collaborated With: Converse
What They're Known For: Zig-zag prints, literally wavy sweaters.

There's plenty of talk about "getting wavy" in the style realm. Missoni's trademark prints do that to a T. It's a no-brainer why Converse has had the Italian label work on more than a few sneakers. Its prints work well with Converse's old-school approach to footwear. The Chuck Taylors between Converse and Missoni are grails to some, and the Auckland Racer fits in perfectly with today's lightweight runner obsession. Too bad there weren't any sneaker collabs in the Missoni's Target collection.

Opening Ceremony

Collaborated With: Nike, adidas Originals, Vans
What They're Known For: Quirky fashion that downtown cool girls and guys love, but also has a worldly appeal.

Founded in New York City by Humberto Leon and Carol Lim, Opening Ceremony began as a store with a simple concept: Pitting independent NY designers against their global counterparts. It makes sense then, why Nike would pick them for a special pop-up for the 2008 Olympics. The store's rapid rise and success led to a bevy of collaborations with bigger companies like Timberland, and the in-house line grew to a prominent fashion collection of its own—with fashion shows that featured high-end sports cars or walls of melted chocolate, definitely a spectacle. Their long-running adidas Originals collaboration continues to push their quirky fashion agenda, while Vans collaborations include artsy ideas like Slip-Ons and Authentics printed with images by the artist René Magritte.

Kenzo

Collaborated With: Vans
What They're Known For: All-over prints, not taking themselves too seriously

If there's one thing to know about Kenzo, it's prints. Founded in the '70s, it became relevant and young once Opening Ceremony co-founders Humberto Leon and Carol Lim took the creative helm. Kenzo takes its borderline psychedelic patterns and places them on Vans' original designs, and it's a winning combination. That's not the only thing Kenzo has going for it. The brand is partly responsible for the rise of the high-fashion sweatshirt. If you've seen sweatshirts with a tiger's face on the front, or anything vaguely similar, it's either from Kenzo or influenced by the label. It's this relaxed approach to high-fashion design that's also allowed for collaborations with New Era on fitted hats—something that, not too long ago, would have been the antithesis of high-fashion. Besides, sneakers and hats go together. That's why Kenzo is able to enter a space that most wouldn't expect it to prosper in.



A.P.C.

Collaborated With: Vans, Nike
What They're Known For: Raw denim, minimal pieces, and that whole Kanye collaboration.

How did you first get into style? Was it through buying a pair of raw denim and wearing them for a year straight? If so, you probably know about A.P.C., the French brand that made not washing your pants (and maybe even wearing them in the ocean) a cool thing. The label, run by man of always entertaining quotes Jean Touitou, is the simplest brand on this list. If you're looking for statement pieces, A.P.C. is not the place to search. Just look at its Kanye West collection: everything was understated. This same philosophy is transferred to its sneaker collabs. A.P.C. takes surefire silhouettes—the Nike Blazer, Air Max 1, and Dunk—and doesn't do much with them. An all-white Air Max 1 is given a gum sole and the Dunk is done-up in buttery suede. They're fashion sneakers sure, but like the brand's jeans and other garments, they don't scream "fashion" with a capital F.



Raf Simons

Collaborated With: adidas
What They're Known For: Square, drapey silhouettes. Grail status bomber jackets. Youthful collections with a rebellious appeal.

Raf Simons is much more than a reference on an A$AP Rocky record (they're friends, too.) When he's not designing for his eponymous label or collaborating with adidas and Eastpak, Simons is the creative director at Dior. Although he only designs the label's women's line, it's Simons' background in industrial design that gives the Belgian-born designer his most insightful cues for his work. His sneakers with adidas have become known for their exaggeration of silhouettes and he's also designed sneakers before his run with the German athletic brand. Two of his most notable models are an upscale take on the Nike Vandal and high-tops inspired by astronauts. Simons can either keep things simple or take them over the top, but there's still a statement made with each piece. His recent collab with adidas even utilizes the same snap closures on some of his Spring/Summer 2014 pieces.