Background information
Birkenstock: hippie slippers turned it item
by Vanessa Kim
Keen sneaker sandal: this new ugly shoe is the fashion world’s darling
4.6.2024
Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson
Half sneaker, half sandal and bang on trend. This hybrid shoe by US outdoor brand Keen has strayed from the hiking trail and is tiptoeing its way into street fashion.
Functionality, comfort and a pinch of ugliness are the recipe for success for «it» shoes these days. The model Uneek by sustainable outdoor brand Keen proves this once again. The hybrid of sneaker and sandal is an acquired taste. It’s been on the market for ten years and is inspiring hiking and streetwear fans alike.
Keen at Paris Fashion Week
Admittedly, when I first spotted this shoe in our range two years ago, I didn’t see its fashion potential. I thought it was plain ugly. And not in a charming, ironic way, but in a fast-forward scrolling way. Last autumn, I came across the Keen brand a second time – but in an unexpected, completely different context: Paris Fashion Week.
Rebelling against industry standards
Designer Kei Ninomiya has made it his mission to reduce sewing to a minimum in his designs. His guiding principle? In order to create something new, new paths must be taken. Instead of using a needle and thread, he connects the individual components using knots, rings, rivets and eyelets to create complex, sculptural garments.
Rory Fuerst Jr, Head of Innovation at Keen, also defied industry standards when he designed Uneek. His goal was to create a shoe that adapts individually to every foot. «If you wrap a flat material around a three-dimensional shape, it will never sit perfectly. It merely folds and creases,» Fuerst explains in a video on the Portland, Oregon-based brand’s website. For a perfect fit, the surface tension must be broken.
Foot-hugging mesh
Instead of the usual individually sewn parts, the upper material of this trekking sandal consists mainly of two interwoven cords made from recycled plastic. There’s no sewing, welding or gluing and the result is a stretchable mesh that adapts to the foot and provides both support and flexibility. According to Keen, the factories were initially unable to produce the innovative design. A new manufacturing process needed to be developed first in collaboration with Fuerst.
Outdoor brands and their streetwear potential
This trend is encouraging outdoor brands to tap into their streetwear potential and focus more on the fashion-conscious public. In recent months, Keen has launched collaborations with respected indie labels such as Hyke from Japan and Only NY from the USA, for example. The fact that Keen shoes are a particularly popular streetwear in East and south-east Asia, shows how effective this kind of positioning can be.
It’s all about context
Header image: Keen
Has endless love for shoulder pads, Stratocasters and sashimi, but a limited tolerance for bad impressions of her Eastern Swiss dialect.
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