When designing their twentieth anniversary Pump KICKS/HI turned on the Hawaiian summertime vibes and created a shoe that evokes the surf, sand and sunshine of their Pacific paradise. We caught up with Chris Kam from the store to learn more about how the Pump20 project came together. We also got the good oil on Hawaiian life and how KICKS/HI has grown from their tiny island home to become a global player in the sneaker stakes.
Of all the stores participating in Reebok's Pump20 collaborative project, none have been in the game for longer than New Jersey's Packer. This family-owned company has been in shoe biz for just over 100 years and is still going strong. Having earned their stripes with Reebok way back in the 80s, their invite to the Pump party was richly deserved. Speaking of just desserts, their Pump20 creation is a long overdue signature shoe for the Human Highlight Film himself, the explosive Dominique Wilkins! We caught up with Mike Packer for the lodown on the Packer story and the buzz behind their rim-shaking release.
Korea may not be renowned as a global fashion hotspot, but as SJ Park from Kasina explains, that's all set to change. For twelve years Kasina has been the vanguard of an emergent Korean street style. Being so tantalisingly close to Tokyo means that Korea quickly inherits the hottest Harajuku trends. But now a more assured Korean identity is emerging, one with its own home-grown fashion sense and sneaker smarts. In recognition of Korea's growing street scene, Reebok enlisted Kasina to design their own Pump for their twentieth anniversary celebrations. We caught up with SJ to get an insider's guide to K-style.
Aside from being the number one store in Germany, Solebox has built an enviable reputation for creating colab sneakers. From their NB Purple Devils to their recent adidas City Series, Solebox has always raised the bar in one way or another. In the case of the Pump20 project, Hikmet Sugoer and his crew literally shined a fresh light on Pump. They inserted a widget that sits beneath the classic Pump orb on the tongue and lights up like a bright orange pumpkin at halloween. You gotta admit, for a gimmick, it’s pretty damn cool! We caught up with Hikmet to find out a little bit more about his fresh lemon butter Solebox Pumps.
Never one to do anything by normal standards, sneaker customiser Nash launched his new collaboration with DC in the most unexpected of ways. Throwing together a who’s who of the European sneaker scene and pitting them against the natural surroundings of England’s countryside, the crew assembled for a day of traditional activities including clay pigeon shooting, quadding and goose herding. It all seems very ‘tea and scones’ but kudos to Nash for coming up with an unconventional approach to launching his new Cadwell custom with DC. Big ups also must go to our mate Errol for his flashy photography. Stay tuned for more information on release dates.
When you think of budget priced sneakers, Hush Puppies and Velcro-strapped clompers come to mind, not Patrick Ewings and Jordans! It seems too good to be true, but as Manolo Prado (el cheapo bastardo extraordinaire) tells us, there’s a million and one bargains out there, you just have to have your thrifty game on lock. This guy is so cheap, he’ll wait three years to pull the trigger – all so he doesn’t have to break a fifty! We needed to get schooled in his tight-ass ways, so we hit up the scrooge to see just how low he goes.
Way back in 1990, the legendary Boston Celtics drafted an unknown called Dee Brown from Jacksonville, Florida. Within twelve months, this raw-boned rookie would have a starring role in one of the great moments in basketball, not to mention the history of marketing sneakers. When I received the assignment to interview Dee, the first thing I thought about was the Slam Dunk contest. It’s the first thing anyone thinks about when his name comes up, which is an interesting legacy in itself. I’m old enough to remember the competition as if it were last week and to say I was prepared is an understatement… I felt like a kid speaking to their role model for the first time!
Pens down peoples! With the bike comp now closed for entries, we've rustled together every single image you sent us into an encyclopedia of two-wheeled madness. We've got a massive task ahead as we try to fish out one worthy winner. Major thanks to everyone who took time out to send us some fantastic pics as well as side-splitting pleas to prove why they deserve to win this bodacious bike! Stay tuned as we sift through all the entries to find the ultimate champion of cycles! All will be revealed next week in the Sneaker Freaker newsletter. Stand by and cross your fingers.
The history of Pump wouldn’t be complete without a collector waxing lyrical about their stash. After a worldwide search, we finally tracked down a polite New Jersey afficionado by the name of DJ Senatore. Like the Canadian mounties, we had our man! With a grab-bag full of vintage Reebok relics, not to mention all the recent colab Pump releases, DJ was generous enough to reveal his crib chocablock with Pump delights. With provenance now confirmed of his 160+ pairs of Pumps, we are delighted to confirm that in our esteemed opinion, DJ Senatore is officially crowned the World’s Greatest Pump Collector! Peep exclusive pics of his collection right here!
The Krew skate brigade kicked off their local tour last night with an epic fan meet and greet at Fast Times Skateboarding on Swanston St, Melbourne. Terry Kennedy, Lizard King, Antwaun Dixon, Spencer Hamilton and Furby were all on deck, generously autographing anything (and anyone!) in site. Check out the photos inside.
One of the great privileges of our job is spending quality time with the wily old veterans of the shoe biz. After decades in the trenches, they’re usually obstreperous, charismatic and wildly entertaining story tellers. In the case of Reebok, Paul Litchfield is all that, and a corporate treasure to boot. After joining the firm in 1985, Paul was the project manager for Pump and also oversaw the development of Hexalite and ERS. Challenged by Paul Fireman to ‘make Pump work’ within a few measly months, Paul accepted the gauntlet and helped push Reebok to become the world’s biggest footwear brand by the late ‘80s. Now Vice President of Advanced Concepts, Paul is still a hard charger, designing and refining the next generation of Reebok innovation.
As the competition to win a DC x SE PK Ripper Fixie comes to a close, we still have loads of entries to sift through and time to add some more if you're quick. One of our most successful giveaways ever, we'd like to thank you all for putting in so much time and effort. It seems there are some real envious rides out there, but nothing beats winning a brand spanking new pushie to make all your mates jealous! Check out the entire collection of entries below - you've got less than one week left to get yours in (comp closes November 1st), so get crackin!
Europeans always do it better when it comes to jaw-smacking sneaker events, and this month's Sneakerness in Vienna did not disapoint. With a portion of the massive arena dedicated to buy/swap/sell tables, many heads walked away with absolute fire, no doubt thanks to the vintage sellers offloading their gems. Surprise guest Bobbito Garcia made an appearance to debut his signature Pro-Ked collabo and chew the fat with the locals. Also on display was a Nike iD set-up and art installations throughout the space. The icing on the cake was the unveiling of the Sneakerness x KangaROOS red/white mid top kick, which threw cats into a spin and grin. Peep the madness that ensured!
There are those that know and those that know they don’t know, and then there are those that don’t know they don’t know. And then there is Mr. Levi Maestro, the Los Angeles based film maker, skater and man of the moment. With his eponymous TV show Maestro Knows blowing up everywhere, we asked him to skate a few of his favorite sneaks and see how they fared. And now you knows...
Vans has officially opened the doors to its first ever Australian flagship store, Vans Melbourne. The opening night guest list was a veritable who's-who of local street identities, with the skate mafia all in attendance, along with Melbourne’s most notorious Vans fiends, all of whom enjoyed tunes from the radalicious MTV VJ Ruby Rose. The store's highlight is the gigantic display case crammed with memorabilia from Vans’ illustrious history, including signed Alva, Hosoi and Steve Caballero decks!
Forged as an alliance between adidas Originals and the Canadian retail conglomerate known as Ransom, the Never Ending Path is a footwear project born and bred for the Northern outdoors. With acres of sleek suede and a ruggedly handsome exterior, the collection comprises five all-new models which are a definite diversion from traditional sportswear – there’s no 3 Stripes on these midnight ramblers! We caught up with our favorite Torontonian Matthew Langille to tell us more about Ransom and their new footwear project... This is definitely one of the highlights of the year so far!
Sneaker Pimps made its seventh tour around the US this past summer hitting 15 cities and working with some of the dopest hip-hop music acts around including J.Cole and Wale through to legendary artists Big Boi, Jadakiss and Clipse. All-in-all a total of 50,000 people attended Sneaker Pimps shows this year in the US! The economy may be down but people still love their sneakers. Check out all the madness as we go on an exclusive ride, courtesy of Sneaker Pimps' frontman Peter Fahey to get the lowdown on what rocked the spot!
We could never have imagined we would cop so much interest in our DC x SE FIXIE giveaway, but you have all outdone yourselves. With at least ten entries hitting our inbox a day we had to come correct with a whole new batch of entries. From dad's bikie gang to home-made BMXs, there is a little something of everything in this batch. Keep them coming, you still have a couple of weeks to enter!
Nike spice up the current lo-fi fixation and colour paranoia by combining with Cassette Playa and Parra to create this intergalactic orgy of colour, kinetic symbology and comedic nuttiness. The focus is clearly the high-tech retro apparel, which although a contradiction in terms is a neat way of describing the stadium/destroyer jackets which are made with Melton wool, Thermore padding and Dri-FIT lining topped with chenille appliques and some of the maddest graphics we've seen since brown acid was big in the 70s. But it's not all about the jackets - there's a few tees as well and lucky for us, Parra also designed this stonking Air Maxim in his trademark black/blue/orange/pink combo with a killer speckle. Check our lookbook right here!
When you think of Jordan Brand there is only one eponymous man that comes to mind. But what about the players behind the scenes - the ones that have kept the Jumpman franchise bubbling like a Berocca since 1985? Introducing Gentry Humphrey, Jordan Brand's General Manager and undisputed king of the hill. Gentry is no overnight rising star. He has been holding down the Jordan fort for the last 18 years, making and breaking deals, all to create the most sought after sneakers on the block. When he's not jet-setting to catch a game of hoops, he's the go-to-man when it comes to getting the dirt on Jordan sneakers. We sent along our main man X-Drift, Melbourne's certified Jordan junkie, to hit Gentry with the all questions you'd ever want answered!
Qubic is fast becoming one of the premier sneaker and street fashion boutiques of the Asia-Pacific. With its slick digs, an enviable list of brands and an enthusiastic core of local heads, the store is generating a palpable buzz from one of the region's most compact markets. Qubic’s exclusive top-tier outlet Quarters has attracted labels that rarely see distribution outside of Japan and Hong Kong - Soph, Silly Thing, Head Porter and Uniform Experiment to name a few. Not only was Qubic amongst the few stores globally to be granted adidas’ ObyO kzk collection, they actually managed to pinch Kazuki Kuraishi himself and fly him in for the launch! We caught up with Qubic head honcho Frank Liew to find out what all the fuss is about...
Our inbox is filling up fast with a huge cross-section of two wheelers in our 'DC x SE FIXIE' giveaway. From toddler trikes to tricked out fixies, these reader's rides prove there's more than one way to roll! All you have to do to get a slice of this DC pie is send us a crispy pic of your bike to info@sneakerfreaker.com. What are you waiting for? Get your Leica ready and start snapping! Check out some of our entries below - we'll be re-upping this section every week with new entries, so be sure to check back! Each and every entry will also receive a little something from Sneaker Freaker as well, so you gotta be in it to win it! CHECK OUT WEEK TWO'S ENTRIES HERE!
The new Foothills project by the UK’s own Crooked Tongues and éS has ruffled a few feathers. Far from embezzling a pantone-athon as yet another colab, both parties agreed to build a trainer from the ground up, Brick by brick. It’s quite an accomplishment, not to mention an investment in time and money, but as Gary Warnett from Crooked says, ‘it’s time to ante up!’ that means a bamix of outdoors and skate puréed with a side order of mid-nineties sneaker-smarts. The end result is a mélange a trois which fronts as neither trad-skate nor typical trail runner and is unsuited to both tasks. Confused? Hell yeah! we liked it even more after Gary explained why it rolls like it does.
When Concepts had the opportunity to work with New Balance for the second time on a shoe design, it seemed natural to source our inspiration from our home town of Boston. We also wanted to touch on both running and hiking in the one set of shoes. The 1500 was a firm Concepts favorite, but the second option was definitely open for negotiation when I sat down with Luis Navarro, who is a designer and product manager over at NB. We also wanted to touch on both running and hiking in the one set of shoes. The 1500 was a firm Concepts favorite, but the second option was definitely open for negotiation when I sat down with Luis Navarro, who is a designer and product manager over at NB.
