PARIS CALLING.
Last week, we joined adidas Originals at the adidas Deerupt Launch Event in Paris. Disruptively simple, undeniably adidas – the futuristic silhouette of the brandnew adidas model is anything but mainstream, so we were very excited to catch a first glimpse of the Deerupt and get to know the design inspiration behind the sneaker. On Wednesday afternoon, we were heartily welcomed at our stay for the next two days – the Hotel National des Arts et Metiérs, right at the heart of this beautiful city. The first point in our agenda followed shortly. Right in front of the hotel, our shuttle for the dinner arrived. The entire European sneaker scene was present – retailer, press, blogger and influencer from different countries in Europe were all invited to celebrate the launch of the Deerupt with adidas. The entire bus was full of sneakerheads guessing which ace adidas would have up their sleeves this time since they are very well known for killing it with breathtaking event locations. The shuttle trip ended shortly and we were not disappointed one bit (as always). I mean… we were going to have dinner right at the Louvre!
GET THE DEERUPT ON KICKZ.COM!DINNER AT THE LOUVRE
The illuminated glass pyramid of the Louvre awaited us in its astonishing beauty. The bus drove to the parking lot, so we entered through the back entrance in the basement – adidas knows how to keep you excited. Red illuminated elevators finally took us to the spot for the night. Right underneath the glass pyramid that we had gazed at only minutes before, we were showed in a room with incredibly long tables elegantly decorated for dinner. Soon, Polish influencers mixed with German retailers and English blogger – it was the perfect come together for people who all share a love for sneakers. It took quite a while until the last person in the room was seated since everyone was thrilled with the light installations in the room.
The grid. Main design inspiration of the adidas Deerupt. It was omnipresent: decorations, light installations, even the food was focusing on the grid. Before the first course was served, dancers wearing the adidas Deerupt kicked off the evening with a spectacular performance. Simon Bus from turnschuh.tv welcomed the audience afterwards and hosted a Q&A with Nic Galway, Senior Vice President of Design at adidas Originals. A very interesting man.
FROM THE 1980s TO 2018
Nic Galway told us sneakerheads a lot about his journey at adidas, the unique DNA of the Three Stripes and was particularly gushed about the brandnew Deerupt. adidas Originals’ core design philosophy has always been about looking to the archives and reinventing the ideas of the past for the now. Not in search for a silhouette this time but rather for a singular design element, Galway and his design team found it: The grid. A webbing technology encasing the soles of the adidas Oregon and New York from back in the 80s was destined to be the core of the Deerupt. Looking into the archives and taking this single idea, the Deerupt literally stretches the concept to conform the entire shoes.
The adidas Deerupt. An idea born from the archives.
“When you play with what’s possible, you define what is possible.” adidas had always had its desire to experiment and discover new possibilities. The Deerupt was born from this courage to disrupt the design DNA of the Brand. As Galway points it out, the grid was the source of inspiration. Think nature. Think urban planning. Think architecture. The grid is the most ubiquitous design element – disruptive and yet simple. A pattern that can be reordered. A shape that can be re-shaped. Great talk!
GAME DAY
On Day 2, we were back at it again at the Louvre. An enormous Deerupt exhibition was waiting for us. The entrance alone was absolutely Instagram-worthy. The mirrored hallway was a visual experience at its best and blogger and retailer alike got their mobile phones out to take pictures. On everyone’s feet: the adidas Deerupt in its iconic blue & red OG colorway. The welcome present by adidas was seen everywhere – smart move, adidas Marketing team! The agenda for the day was packed with workshops to experience the Deerupt and its design visions: Enter the grid. Explore the grid. Illuminate the grid. Engrave the grid. Print the grid. On the one side of the exhibition room, we were presented with exclusive Deerupt bags. Only few meters away, you had the possibility to have a professional shooting with adidas apparel and the Deerupt by skillful photographers. In the other corner of the room, you could receive temporary adidas tattoos as well as “real ones” – yes, you heard it right… adidas truly brought a Parisian tattooist to the event to tattoo designs in a grid-optic.
After an awesome yet exhausting day in the Louvre, we headed back to the hotel and came together for an exclusive dinner solely for all the german retailers and influencers at a very nice restaurant two blocks away. Once again, adidas did it properly and gave us the opportunity to chat about the sneaker scene in Germany, our favorite releases of the year and of course, about the Deerupt. The French cuisine was on point, as always. Soon after, we made our way to the Louvre once again for the last time. Drinks and good vibes awaited us there. The Parisian streetwear scene was invited as well – familiar blogger faces and extravagant styles greeted us at the exact same location we had been before the entire day. The music line up for the night sounded very promising as well: Myth Syzer, The Blaze, Sure Vie, Justice, Brodinski and Dure Vie.
The Launch Event of the adidas Deerupt was a blast, thank you adidas Originals. KICKZ out!
PARISIAN STREETWEAR MEETS THE DEERUPT
On the next day, we hit the streets in Paris with a Parisian girl we met the night before. Rocking the adidas Deerupt, our gorgeous model took us to some of the most urban spots. Parisian streetwear meets the Deerupt. Check our KICKZ exclusive shooting of the adidas Deerupt in the streets of Paris: