Sneaker Freaker x Le Coq Sportif Flash Launch

The sun briefly came out this week on what has been a dreary week in Sydney thanks to Sneaker Freaker and Le Coq Sportif who lauched their collab, the 'Summer Bay' Flash.

The Flash is of course and iconic Le Coq Sportif silhouette from the early 90's and Woody (second pic on the right) from Sneaker Freaker has given a firm tip of the cap to the OG roots of the shoe, but also with a modern twist.

The shoe's launch bought Sydney's crowd out in force, with some great Le Coq feet heat on display (and general all round amour for the brand), all itching to get their hands on a great new drop that follows quick on the heels of the Foot Patrol x Le Coq Sportif Eclat that dropped only a few weeks ago (I was there to capture the Highs and Lows launch in Perth).

Stay tuned to Sneaker Freaker for news of where you can pick up the Summer Bay Flash, and be quick as it's sure to go in a fl....(you can work out where I'm going here).

Thanks to Woody and Le Coq Sportif for having me along to the party to shoot - cheers guys!

Leg of Art; Perth

Blake; Perth

What is it with Chefs and shoes?  It seems from my travels that often being a connoisseur of cuisine also means a fondess for fondwear, and in Perth’s Blake I may have found THE Masterchef of the shoe world.

As a refined fashion-ista in his own right Blake juggles a career as a fine dining chef with an ability to keep a close eye on Perth’s style scene by writing for 6 Thousand.

He’s keen on contemporary street brands (this outfit mixes Supreme, TEdwin, Durkll and Sunday Somewhere), and this is one chef you won’t find wearing Crocs in his kitchen as he’s a huge sneakerhead.  He has a select collection of about 85 pairs of shoes, including these Air Max 90 x Patta Quickstrike ‘Homegrowns’, a chic shoe that would tantalize any sneakerhead’s palette including the folks at Complex who rated it a respectable 52 in their top 100 shoes of the decade.

Ups and Downs; Perth

Scott; Perth

As the Retail Manager and Buyer at Perth's leading sneaker boutique Highs and Lows Scott plays an integral role in ensuring that the store is at the forefront of the global sneaker scene.

He knows his stuff as you will have seen from the Hypebeast x Reebok Classic HAL video I made recently that features Scott (see here), as he's seen talking about the store's current Reebok collab that saw them take on the mighty Reebok Classic.

He was happy to pose showing another shoe that he's got his fingerprints all over, the 2010 Reebok GL 6000 x HAL collab, a shoe that marked the store's 5th anniversary.

With a respect, appreciation and understanding of the history of sneaker culture Scott is helping to shape the scene's future too - so keep an eye on him and HAL for more exciting collabs in the future.

Mohi: Perth

Perth may be isolated, but that doesn't mean to say the city doesn't have a tightly knit sneaker community, something Mohi can vouch for first hand.
He started getting into shoes when he was younger and was into basketball with Jordan's and Dunks being his shoe's of choice.  From there he got into all shapes and styles, and today his favourite aspect of the sneaker game in Perth is the community side of things and the tight crew he is part of who all have a shared love of kicks.
He may have broadened his sneaker horizons from being just a basketball shoe fan, but he couldn't resist spending big ($450) to land these Ronnie Fieg 'Knicks' Gel Lyte IIIs.  The Knicks are Mohi's team and when he saw them represented in shoe form he couldn't resist spending big to land them.

Roadtest; New Balance 576 25th Anniversary Pack

The New Balance 576, a UK-made institution in the NB portfolio, and it's proudly celebrating it's 25th Birthday with the drop of the classy 25th Anniversary Pack.

The shoe comes in the traditional OG colourways of Blue and Navy with a premium suede upper which is complimented perfectly with a vintage-styled ENCAP system integrated into the sole.
With only 600 pairs released worldwide these are classics, so it seemed only fitting to tip the cap to the shoe's UK roots in this latest 'Roadtest' video.

* This is an unpaid video.

Lee: Perth

During my time in Perth (which to be honest was pretty short as I was there for less than 48 hours) I was keen to tap into the cities street scene, and see what kind of sneaker scene the city has.  And luckily for me, in Lee I found someone with probably one of the biggest sneaker collections in WA. 

With over 450 pairs of kicks to his name he is a self confessed ‘brand whore’ whose mantra when buying is ‘if I don’t like it I won’t buy it, but if I do like it, I’ll like it a LOT!’.

He’s wearing the sublime Saint Alfred x Asics Gel-Lyte III collab, a shoe from the classic Chicago outfitters Saint Alfred that’s getting sneaker lovers around the world salivating.  The shoe’s pretty fresh and he was delighted to get them online in what he classes as a big scoop.

Rather than hiding his shoes away Lee wears and shares about 90% of his collection, and such is his passion for adding to his collection he even picks up shoes in the wrong size if he has to, which by his own admission is when he realized he had a problem.

I don’t see any problem, it’s just a passionate sneaker lover going to great lengths to rep himself and Perth in a big way.

Reebok Round Up; Exclusive

Reebok Classics LX 8500 'Vintage' Pack

Reebok Classic Leather Luxe; Horween Leather

Reebok Classic GL 6000 - Marathon Pack

Reebok Classic GL 6000 - OG

Reebok Classic GL 6000 - OG

Reebok Classic Leather Suede Pack

Reebok Classic Leather Suede Pack

Following on from yesterday's reveal of my Reebok x Hypebeast x HAL video, it seems only right to keep the Reebok love going with an exclusive glimpse into some great upcoming drops from the brand.

Starting at the top is this great drop from the LX 8500 'Vintage' Pack.  First released in 1985 the LX 8500 was Reebok's pinnacle shoe and this is the first time this shoe has seen a one 2 one retro.  A great looking shoe and it's easy to see why so many peeps are drooling over this kick.

Next is the Classic Leather Luxe Horween Leather addition which offers a premium make up of the Classic Leather Luxe featuring a Premium "Horween Leather" upper.  Horween is out of Chicago and has over 100 years experience in supplying the highest grade leathers.  This shoe reeks of quality; heavy, sturdy with a build quality making the shoe as impressive as it looks.

The GL 6000 is a silhouette I love, and has a similar background to the LX 8500 in that it first dropped in 1985, and it's original purpose was to cater for the performance minded shoe wearer.  These upcoming drops feature the Marathon pack (a great pack in my opinion), and some OG Men's in original colourways with a subtle vintage treatment. 

Finally, the Reebok Classic Leather Suede Pack offers 30th anniversary make ups of last years successful CL vintage pack.  A few colourways will be dropping, but the red and blue got my attention the most.

A big thanks to HAL and Reebok Australia for access to the above kicks - and keep an eye on Highs and Lows if you want to spend some $$$ to share in the Reebok love.

Hypebeast x Reebok Classic Leather x HAL: Perth

This week kick's off my first ever Perth season on IDYSM.  It's the remotest city in the world, hidden away in Western Australia and surrounded by desert, but despite it's location Perth's sneaker scene is not barren at all.  

To celebrate the 30 year anniversary of the iconic Reebok Classic, Reebok have given 15 key sneaker boutiques around the world the chance to put their spin on the classic shoe.
In this exclusive video I made for Hypebeast x Reebok I had the chance to speak to the team at Highs and Lows, a sneaker boutique from Perth, Australia who reveal their take on the Reebok Classic, explain their inspiration and offer their thanks for being involved with the project.

Thanks to Hypebeast, Scott Wiltshire, Srdjan Mitrovic, Reebok/Reebok Australia, Jared Merrett

More to come from the Wild West so stick around!

Joe; Sydney

Something I love examining on IDYSM is not only individual stories, but also how trends and styles can influence whole communities and cities.  I mention this as Ross' footwear (and overall look) stood out to me in Sydney's Bondi Beach for not being the type of thing you would expect to see in this area (the over-riding Bondi style is low key and lo-fi) so I was intrigued to find out more about this satorially mysterious Air Jordan 3 wearer!

It turns out that my instincts were onto something as Joe is from New York, and picked up these Bright Crimson variations on the Jordan 3 from a backstreet store in Brooklyn, and it took him some effort to land the shoes which were on a limited release at the time.
While he see's the shoe as being a very New York style of shoe (a colourful basketball inspired shoe) his kicks were not the only thing that saw him stand out as his outfit was littered with interesting pieces including a leather jacket from Prada, pants from Y-3 and a shirt from Homecore, which are all pieces picked up from his travels around the world doing...actually I'm not quite sure what exactly, he mentioned something to do with a church and something to do with being a photographer but he was very vague about his job.
Either way though, my take is that Joe is something of an enigma, and I was glad to meet someone bringing an eclectic taste of his own life, and something a bit different to my neighbourhood.

Nike Flyknit

Flyknit Trainer +

Flyknit Trainer + 

Flyknit Trainer + 

Flyknit One +; Red/Blue 

Flyknit One +; Red/Blue

Flyknit One +; Green/Black 

Flyknit One +; Green/Black 

I've taken up knitting.  No, not the crochet tapestry thing, but a fondness for the Nike Flyknit shoe that's gaining popularity at an alarming rate.

We were first introduced to the Flyknit technology on IDYSM last year at the Sydney Innovation Pop Up store by Nike Innovation Designer Matt Nordstrum (see below video), and I've been intrigued about how that same technology combining structure and breathability has become a popular, and ever evolving street wear option as all versions of the shoe feature the characteristic lightness, comfort and support you expect, but with some varying twists and tweaks.

The Flyknit Trainer + offers the more conventional take on the Flyknit shoe - with rounded laces now already replaced by flat laces (the above shoe is a late 2012 version, with new 2013 colourways abandoning the rounded lace), while the Flyknit One + fuses the Flywire upper with a Lunarlon cushioning sole, and the Flyknit Trainer + that offers the lightness, comfort and support you would want for running or for casual wear.

Similar to the Free and Roshe, Nike are showing that a solid contemporary silhouette can provide the platform for countless incarnations - keeping up with it all must make Matt Nordstrum a very busy man!