STAPLE presents its new Slide model for the summer season in collaboration with Vibram. The fresh silhouette arrives with the technical StratX base which reimagines the brand's pigeon emblem in a wingspan-inspired upper. This makes it the first exclusive launch of StratX in America.
The base is molded from a rubber sheet and then engineered through vacuum forming, which helps the sculptural and feathered form while giving it a durable and soft feel similar to leather. Staple reflects on the minimal design language, noting “We could’ve used printing, embroidery, or laser etching – but we asked ourselves, what if it was shaped and molded. Vibram’s innovative new StratX compound was the answer. Instead of adding design to a surface, we wanted to shape the surface itself.”
Image Credit: Vibram
What Makes This Trend Stand Out
- Innovative Slide Footwear
- The emergence of summer-ready slides featuring advanced molded bases marks a significant trend in combining fashion with function.
- Minimalist Design Language
- The choice to mold designs directly into the material rather than embellishing surfaces aligns with a broader trend towards sleek, minimalistic aesthetics in fashion.
- Collaborative Fashion-tech
- Collaborations between fashion brands and technology companies, like STAPLE and Vibram, demonstrate the increasing fusion of design with technical innovation in product development.
Sectors Adopting This
- Footwear Industry
- The footwear industry is experiencing disruptions through the introduction of novel materials and constructing techniques that enhance both aesthetic and practical applications.
- Material Engineering
- Material engineering gains prominence in fashion, pushing boundaries with innovative compounds like Vibram's StratX used in functional and stylish designs.
- Fashion Collaborations
- Increased cross-industry collaborations reflect a shift in the fashion industry towards leveraging diverse expertise for cutting-edge product development.
