Lacoste Legends: The Power of 12 Launches at Chicago's Akira

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This winter, Lacoste tapped 12 sneaker experts and tastemakers—designers, editors, shopkeepers, and style icons—to create special-edition footwear. Christophe Lemaire, along with Tim Hamilton, Sneaker Freaker, i-D, Shoes Master, Sebastien Tellier, Stones Throw, ato, D-Mop, Colette, Bodega, and Soul II Soul founding member Jazzie B created polo-inspired men’s shoes with the French fashion house—each with its own unique styling.

Tim Hamilton worked on the collaboration with his diffusion Redux label in mind—mixing the classic 1963 original Rene Lacoste sole with an outré hi-top proportion and a military-inspired dip-dyed finish. “I’m in my late-30s now,” Hamilton says. “What do you wear when you’re older, when you’re a grown-up?”

The high priest of sneaker fever, Simon Wood of Sneaker Freaker, took this opportunity to create a boat shoe, not a sneaker—with a twist. “With this one, we really needed to set an agenda by doing something that hasn’t been done before,” Wood says. He demonstrates how the collar on the shoe can be popped up—just like on the iconic shirt. “It’s a little gimmick I suppose in a positive way,” he says. “That’s the essence of a great idea, not that it’s immediately obvious. We could have put that in yellow or something stupid and it would draw attention to it, but it’s all about being restrained and letting people discover that there’s a little bit of an idea there. Exactly the same as the shirt.”
· 24 Teeth: Lacoste Legends [Official Site]
· Interview with Bodega's Jay Gordon [Racked]
· Interview with Sneaker Freaker's Woody [Racked]