mita sneakers x Asics Gel Lyte III “25th Anniversary”
[Link]
Two very popular running sneakers had their 25th anniversary this year. One brand did a great job celebrating the milestone, and the other left a lot to be desired. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t expect the marketing behemoth that is Nike to have the latter said of it.
While the original Infrared colorway released in satisfactory fashion, the Air Max 90 did very little else to let it be known that the Tinker-designed sneaker’s 25th birthday party was taking place in 2015. Asics, on the other hand, went to great lengths to ensure that the iconic Gel Lyte III’s 25th anniversary reveled in great fanfare all year long. The brand paired a series of great-looking general release colorways of the sneaker with collaborative efforts from some of the most notable boutiques in the world, and the strategy worked wonders.
Take your pick; most of the collaborations were top-notch. Though Hanon made a strong push with their rendition near the end of the year, my favorite was the mita sneakers collaboration, which started the year off right for the model by infusing high quality suede and nubuck with a mix of bright blue tones and red accents that highlight the uniquely constructed runner’s complex upper.
Robbie Falchi
Nick Engvall