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Good morning, friends! Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thanks so much for rocking with me today. Hope you’ve got a great weekend ahead of you.
I’m headed to Providence this weekend for the Rhode Island Seafood Festival! Very exciting times. Gonna stuff my face with so much lobster. Hopefully, I’ll be out of my food coma by the time we send Tuesday’s newsletter.
Let’s jump in!
Turning Wellness Into Luxury
Kith’s claim to fame has always been its flexibility. It collaborates with a wide range of brands to produce unique products and experiences for its customers. This week, for the first time, it’s breaking into hospitality in the most luxurious way possible.
What’s happening: Ronnie Fieg announced “Kith Ivy” this week. It’s a full-service wellness and padel club planted in New York City’s West Village.
Details: The private members-only club won’t open until later this fall. It’ll feature:
- New York City’s first Erewhon and the first outpost outside of California.
- A 1,500 square foot fitness center for members.
- A Wilson x Kith rooftop padel court.
- Luxury spa experiences curated by Kith and fallen fashion icon Giorgio Armani’s eponymous fashion label.
- Dining with New York’s Café Mogador.
The tentpole of the project is the padel court. Fieg specifically called it the “centerpiece” of his Kith Ivy vision. That’s not a coincidence. Padel is a burgeoning sport in the luxury world, with sports royalty like Serena Williams, Dwyane Wade, Lionel Messi, David Beckham and more playing it.
Along with those stars, there are over 25 million people around the globe playing the sport. That number grows as time goes by.
Pricing: When it launches, Kith Ivy membership won’t come cheap. Spots are limited and will reportedly cost $36,000 to join, in addition to $7,000 in annual dues. You’ll have to fork over $43,000 if you want to buy that infamous $23 Erewhon smoothie in New York City.
But, for those Kith is targeting with this, that shouldn’t be too tall a task.
Be smart: In recent years, Kith has leveraged high-end partnerships with upscale brands, including names like Giorgio Armani, Versace, and Bergdorf Goodman, among others, to attract the ultra-wealthy. Luxury has become part of the brand’s identity. The Kith Ivy project is its most comprehensive foray into the space yet, considering the brands involved and the services they’ll provide.
The big picture: Kith has the unique ability to appeal to multiple audiences across different tax brackets. There’s something for everyone.
- One week, it’ll release a more accessible collection in its Monday Program, like its latest JAWS drop or its Adidas Running capsule.
- The next week, it’ll launch something like Kith Ivy that only the wealthiest customers would be interested in, let alone have access to.
What’s so fascinating is that the brand has managed to court these audiences without alienating either. Kith doesn’t feel cheap when it ventures into the streetwear space. It also doesn’t feel too haughty when it dives into luxury. The two worlds are kept completely separate, which is a tough line to toe.
The other side: While Kith might be courting the wealthy customer, that doesn’t mean that that demographic will respond. Kith isn’t exclusively a luxury retailer — at least not yet. A day may come when the brand needs to pick a lane and it’ll be fascinating to see which direction it goes in.
But, for now, Kith is impressively playing the middle.
Another Round of Nike Layoffs
Changes under Nike CEO Elliott Hill continue with another round of layoffs.
What’s happening: The brand is laying off what it’s calling less than one percent of its corporate staff in Portland. Employees were asked via email to work from home through Sept. 8 while the company makes decisions on where the cuts will be made.
- There are 10,500 employees currently working at Nike HQ, according to The Oregonian’s Matthew Kish, which would mean that roughly 100 jobs would be eliminated by the brand.
The backdrop: These layoffs are part of a larger shift at Nike, as the brand is churning out employees and executives while pushing forward with Hill’s “Win Now” strategy prioritizing sports.
Why this matters: Layoffs suck. I hate writing about them. I hate seeing them. This is typically part of the corporate progression when a new CEO takes over. My colleague, Shenna Butler-Young, outlined this in her latest piece at The Business of Fashion on the industry’s stagnant job market.
How it works from Sheena Butler-Young:
“Traditionally, a new leader’s first year is for assessing and learning the business, the second for implementing strategy, and the third for iteration. The most challenging work often comes in years four and five — figuring out what’s working, what’s not, and adapting. Many leaders were exiting before they could show they’re worth their salt, [Lisa] Yae, [managing partner of the retail and luxury goods practice at CAA Executive Search] said.”
Where things stand: Hill has been on the job for nearly a year now. He’s putting his people in place while establishing his “Win Now” policy. As Butler-Young said, year two is for implementation. In a lot of ways, we’re already seeing that happen.
- The brand has refocused more on its signature athlete brands, pushing upstart names like A’ja Wilson to the forefront for Nike Basketball and centering Converse around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (More on him in a second).
- Nike has transformed its ACG line from a gorpcore-lifestyle staple into a legitimate trail running brand.
- The Swoosh has also made its presence stronger in sports that it’s neglected like soccer and track.
It’s still a wait-and-see situation as to what this will ultimately amount to, but the vision is clear. Hopefully, as the company continues to execute its vision, we won’t need to see more people losing their jobs due to restructuring.
The Shai 001 Has Arrived
Speaking of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA MVP’s signature Converse sneaker is finally hitting shelves.
The news: The Shai 001 “Butter” colorway had a limited launch on Thursday, with a few surprises included.
- The sneaker launched on Converse’s website and Nike’s SNKRS app, where the brand drops its most anticipated products.
- Converse also held a launch event at Kith Toronto, where the Canadian-native Gilgeous-Alexander made an appearance.
The situation: This sneaker has had such a slow burn. Converse unveiled it in February at NBA All-Star weekend, but it wasn’t available for purchase until now. Considering the long wait, I’d wondered if the brand missed the perfect window to release the show after such a successful season for Gilgeous-Alexander, who became the NBA’s MVP and won a championship.
Joke’s on me. Things are fine!
The caveat: The limited nature of the release is certainly a contributing factor here. If there were more pairs available via more retailers, the secondary market reaction wouldn’t be as strong.
But the fact that it is shows that fans are legitimately excited about these shoes. Basketball shoes are having a moment. Between these, Anthony Edwards’ signature AE 1 and A’ja Wilson’s A’One, there hasn’t been this much excitement in this space for years.
Why this matters: We’ll see if the fanfare continues with other Shai 001 colorways, but what we saw on Thursday is a good sign for Converse. The brand badly needed one — its revenue has dipped for eight straight quarters.
A limited run of a hoops shoe won’t be the magic wand that waves it all away, but this at least gives Converse something to build on.
The Virgil Abloh Archive Looks Incredible
For those of us who might be unable to make it out to Paris in a few weeks to get a glimpse of the Virgil Abloh Archive’s first public exhibition of the late designer’s work, this latest piece from GQ’s Samuel Hine will have to satiate you.
What’s happening: Hine and photographer Michael Schmelling revealed a secret Abloh archive filled with 20,000 pieces Abloh touched.
- It included unreleased prototypes of classic Nike silhouettes like the Air Max 90 and Air Force One.
- It also included pieces from other designers and creatives that Abloh admired, from Raf Simons to Tom Sachs.
- There were a handful of pitches to luxury companies, including Prada (with Nike), Versace and Louis Vuitton.
Why this matters: The archive itself is a sight to behold — even through simple photos. The sheer volume of projects Abloh worked on that never saw the light of day is astounding. It shows just how much the creative had to offer.
Unfortunately, though, it also shows how much he had left to share with the industry. Seeing these incomplete projects laid out here serves as a harsh reminder of what could’ve been.
#TheKicksWeWear
First, the homie Storm came through with all the fits in all the colorways. She always kills it.
The homie Rohan followed up with this excellent pair of T90s. Really need a pair of these bad boys.
The homie Joe came through with the Prairie View A&M Adidas joints. What a shoe. What a story. Shoutout to all my HBCUs out there.
The homie Gyophry pulled out the Stussy x Nike LD-1000. Love this pair — especially considering how worn they are. This shoe has character.
Havana Seoul came through with the Neopolitan Air Jordan 3s. What an underrated colorway! Plus, that rug is great for the background.
Then the homie Orin and his kiddo closed us out with the UNDFTD Jordan 4s plus a tiny pair of Vans. Words cannot express how much I love this, you guys.
Great work y’all. Smoked that.
Thanks for reading, gang. Hope you enjoyed today’s newsletter. Have a fantastic weekend.
If you have any questions, comments or concerns, feel free to reach me at michael.sykes@businessoffashion.com or shoot me a message via socials @MikeDSykes.
Until next time. Peace and love. Be safe, be easy, be kind. We out.
-Sykes 💯