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Last year, Berlin sneaker boutique Overkill made an interesting decision: It decided to work with KangaROOS on the Coil R1, and the result was a collab titled the "Abyss." The retro runner, which featured a stripe reminiscent of a varsity jacket, not only put us up on Overkill, but also KangaROOS, which was new to the collaboration scene.
As 2014 has gone on, there have been a few more projects from KangaROOS, including very high-quality Coil R1s that were made in the German town of Pirmasens, a small town near the border of France with a rich shoe-making history — which ROOS has helped revive through special projects and a made in Germany line. This not only has given customers premium options from the athletic brand, but it's also given work to the craftsmen who have seen their jobs outsourced in the past.
And now, Overkill has been given another chance to work with the brand, and this time it's on the German-made version of the Coil R1. The shop put together a "Grape Pack," and it includes two different colorways of the model.
To get a better understanding of this project, we talked to Overkill co-CEO Marc Leuschner about the sneakers, and this is what he had to say. Here's Everything You Need to Know About Overkill and KangaROOS' "Grape Pack."
The pack is going to be very limited, but one pair will be harder to get than the other.
Collaborations are usually limited, but this project is even smaller of a run than most people are used to. "There will only be 10 pairs of the blue pair, because there wasn't as much of that leather available. So that one will be very exclusive," Leuschner said. "There will also only be 50 pairs of the red sneaker in the pack."
Overkill just didn't randomly select the Coil R1 silhouette, but has also played a large role in its revival.
Certain sneakers have undeniable ties with sneaker boutiques - the Gel Lyte III with Kith and the Air Jordan IV with Undefeated, as examples - and the Coil R1 might be Overkill's known silhouette. And there's a reason for it. "We started working with ROOS in 2007. Back then, it was a bit of an underdog here. In 2010, KangaROOS pushed the Coil R-1 silhouette," Leuschner said. "I decided I really liked the sneaker, so I talked to Thomas and all of my workers, and we started to wear it. So all the collectors that come to Overkill see it on our feet, and they say, 'Oh, that's cool.'"
But what's behind the "Grape" concept?
The red and blue sneakers make up the "Grape" theme for this collection, but the story came together after they decided which sneakers they wanted to make. "We looked into the shoes here, and we spoke to ROOS about the different materials that we can use, what different things we can do with the design and details. When we went to the factory, we were shown which leather options we could use for the collaboration," Leuschner said. "Me and Thomas, the other CEO of Overkill, decided that we wanted to do a red sneaker. Then we decided we wanted a blue sneaker, too, and that's when we came up with the idea of the 'Grape Pack.'"
This isn't exactly a "collaboration."
Overkill's name is on the sneakers, this pack is only dropping at Overkill, and the shop chose how the sneakers were going to look. But they don't exactly consider it a real "collab," but something else. "The 'Grape Pack' isn't 100 percent a collaboration, but more so an exclusive that was designed by Overkill," Leuschner said. "We went to the factory and could choose from the different materials, but we could only pick from what was available. It's not the same when we can come up with a concept, show it to the brand, and have them get the materials from wherever they can."
The sneakers aren't the only high-quality item that the purchaser will receive.
When you buy a limited sneaker, you want it to feel special. You want it to come in something nice and not seem like something that's stocked at any chain retailer. So, Overkill put together a handcrafted box to drive home this project. "After we decided that we had come up with the idea for the 'Grape Pack,' we decided that we wanted nice packaging for it, too. So we wanted to create a really expensive box to put it in," Leuschner said. "We have a friend who's a carpenter, and he produced the boxes for the pack right here in Berlin. The project was completely done in Germany. It was designed by Overkill, made in Pirmasens, and the box was made in Berlin. And we thought it would be something really nice for the collectors to have."
Are the sneakers going to be available online, too?
For those hoping to get the "Grape Pack" online, there might be a chance that the sneakers drop on Overkill's e-commerce site, but don't count on it. "Usually, we launch a shoe first in-store, and if it doesn't sell out, we put the rest of the sneakers online," Leuschner said. "But with only 10 pairs of a sneaker, it's going to be hard to put it online."
This is why Overkill wanted to do this pack.
Collaborations come together in different ways, but they're usually meant to tell a story that has resonance with the shop, artist, or designer that's creating it. And it was no different for Overkill. "Last year, we did the collab with the 'Abyss' Coil R1, and we were excited to go to Pirmasens and meet these workers inside of a German factory," Leuschner said. "At this point, they're able to create projects in really small numbers that are really high quality, and we think that's a strong story. So we approached ROOS to do a project, and we think it's a story that should be told: making shoes in Germany."
And here's the release information.
With all of that said, here's the really important info: How you can buy the sneakers. They'll be releasing this upcoming Saturday, September 20, at Overkill's location in Berlin, Germany at 11 a.m. CET. Each sneaker will retail for 250€, or about $324.
