Fashion Briefing: High fashion's love affair with sneaker brands like Hoka still runs hot - Glossy

Published 1 week ago• 4 minute read

This week, we take a look at the continued collaboration between high fashion brands and sneaker brands, with a particular emphasis on brands like Hoka and On Running, which are taking market share from titans like Nike and Adidas.

The days of the Big Ugly Sneaker, typified by the Balenciaga Triple S, may be gone, but fashion’s love affair with sneakers is far from over. While traditional sneaker brands like Nike and Adidas have long been a fascination of big-name fashion designers, now, it’s up and coming challenger brands like Hoka and On Running that are collaborating with designers and appearing on runways.

Earlier this month, Hoka, one of the rising stars of the sneaker world, debuted a new collaboration with Italian high-fashion brand Marni. The luxury take on Hoka’s popular Bondi B3LS model is set to release at the beginning of April and follows a host of collaborations that Hoka has embarked on over the last year. Previous collaborators include Free People, Junya Watanabe and Reformation. In addition Hoka has been worn by major celebrities including Harry Styles, Olivia Wilde, Kylie Jenner and Kate Hudson.

Thomas Cykana, Hoka’s global head of partnerships and collaborations, told Glossy these releases represent a shift in “the way we reveal the product to customers, rather than a shift in the product itself.” In other words, there’s not much difference between a Marni x Hoka sneaker and one of Hoka’s mainline products. What is different is who the shoe is being targeted to. Cykana said the shoe is meant to bring in the more fashion-oriented footwear enthusiast to complement Hoka’s existing base of runners and athletes.

But, Cykana said, the cross-pollination of collaboration can be a trap. While one of the benefits of a collab is that you get access to an audience you may not typically be able to reach, going too far afield can be a waste of time.

“The old school mode of thinking about collabs is: You’ve got an audience, I’ve got an audience, let’s merge them,” Cykana said. “I’m starting to emphasize to our team that we’re better off super-serving our top 5% of customers and potential customers.”

Marni shoppers represented part of that top 5% because of Marni’s commitment to quality over quantity, Cykana said. Marni’s own footwear tends to be handmade in Italy and with materials like 100% calf leather.

The crossover between high-fashion and sneakers has been running hot. In the last month, Vans collaborated with Valentino, Balenciaga with Puma, Commes des Garcons with New Balance and Barbour with Crocs. Many of these collabs are being shown on the biggest runways in the world, like the Vans x Valentino shoe which was shown at Valentino’s show at Paris Fashion Week this season.

There’s also the “snoafer,” a combination of sneaker and loafer that brings together the two worlds into one idiosyncratic passage. This too is a trend that Hoka has gotten in on with its Speed loafer, a snoafer described by Runner’s World as “unhinged” for its outré appearance.

But those experiments are helping brands like Hoka and On to capture market share from the sneaker market’s titans Nike and Adidas. On Thursday, Nike reported its worst revenue fall in five years, with sales dropping by 11%. Adidas, while doing better than expected in its most recent earnings, has also seen its share of the sneaker market decline.

That has left brands like Hoka and On to pick up a bigger piece of the pie. Hoka parent company Deckers Brands saw its sales surge after its most recent earnings in February. On, meanwhile, reported full-year 2024 earnings earlier this month, showing growth of nearly 30%. A report from McKinsey and the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry released earlier this month showed Nike’s market share dropping by 20% while Deckers increased by 80% and On Running’s by 147%.

Hoka touted its high-fashion connections as part of its growth strategy. On has had a continuing collaboration with Spanish luxury brand Loewe since 2022.

“Fashion and luxury brands are catching up,” said David Olyavan, On’s co-founder and executive co-chairman, on the brand’s earnings call on March 4. “Only the premium sports brands are perfectly positioned at the intersection of performance and cultural relevance. We’re not just riding a wave, we’re at the heart of it.”

While the days of the Triple S may be over, Cykana said he has no doubt that high-fashion collaborations with sneakers will continue.

“It’s a really fun time in footwear right now,” he said. “The sneaker loafer moment is white hot. Our Speed loafer went viral during men’s fashion week and sold out in 45 minutes. Whether it’s boots or loafers, sneakers, there’s a broader desire for choice in footwear.”