Reebok’s latest drops are pulling from a vast array of cultural influences, ranging from Cardi B to the Power Rangers. Over the course of the past month, the brand has released or teased a number of new styles and updated silhouettes designed to appeal to swathes of shoppers, from the style-focused to the athletically inclined.
Fans of the WAP artist have a new shoe to gush over, following the release of the Club C last fall and a line of active apparel this spring. On July 16 Reebok and Cardi B released the Classic Leather Cardi, a take on one of the brand’s most popular sneaker styles redesigned in a lavish gold color way.
The silhouette, inspired by Cardi B’s love of gold, was designed as a statement-maker, Reebok said, reflecting the artist’s larger-than-life personality. The classic silhouette was transformed to reflect her aesthetic, combining the Classic Leather upper with the midsole of the Reebok Legacy 83 for a more feminine, fashion-forward look. The upper combines leather, suede and a satin-like sheen, along with a velvet accent on the tongue. The price of the style has not yet been released, though it will be available exclusively on Reebok.com.
On Thursday, Victoria Beckham and Reebok debuted their newest collaborative collection of athleisure styles, Drop Five. Minimal, structured silhouettes in chalky hues like white, pale pink, soft rose and black proliferate throughout the line, which includes running shorts, leggings, a puffer jacket, a tennis dress and an anorak.
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“For this Drop, I was [focused] on putting together a curated edit to address the performance and lifestyle needs of my community,” creative director Beckham said. “With Reebok’s sporting expertise and the Victoria Beckham brand handwriting, we have designed an elevated yet highly functional wardrobe that can be worn all day long.” A coordinating seamless set of ribbed leggings, a hoodie and a bra top brings monochromatic “uniform dressing” to the world of sport, she added.
Drop 5 also includes footwear, in the form of a new version of the Zig Kinetica in white, green and a deep blush, featuring suede leather accents, as well as a reimagined version of Reebok’s Rapide silhouette with contrast color embroidery on the heel. Finally, the Club C in all-white and cream, as well as a storm glow version of the Bolton Knit will round out the collection.
In collaboration with Universal Brand Development, Reebok also dropped a “Jurassic Park”-inspired family footwear and apparel collection on Thursday. The line, which features new styles based on the franchise, was teased in a parody news report announcing that Reebok and InGen—the fictional bioengineering firm responsible for creating the dinosaurs in the original “Jurassic Park” film—spliced sneaker and dinosaur DNA to give rise to the collection.
The capsule, which ranges in price from $100-$200, features “Jurassic Park”-themed versions of the Instapump Fury, inspired by the park guests’ SUVs, the Club C 85, in two silhouettes designed to encompass the costumes of characters Dennis Nedry and Dr. Alan Grant, the Classic Leather, with a range of prehistoric patterns and textures, the Zig Devil Kinetica, made in the image of the park staff’s SUV’s, the Club C Legacy, which pays homage to Mr. DNA, who explains the process of creating dinosaur DNA, the Jurassic Stomper, which includes changeable patches, and the Pump Omni Zone II, a style-forward shoe with dinosaur graphics on the upper. A Mr. DNA hoodie, utility vest to match the Jurassic Stomper and a number of themed T-shirts complement the footwear range.
After reintroducing the cult favorite Beatnik clog style in 2020, Reebok is building upon the casual shoe’s success with a new capsule made using natural dyes.
Two new color ways, beige and blue, are meant to represent earth and water, respectively. Each shoe features a mountain motif on the upper, along with heel straps inspired by outdoor-ready gear. Constructed using canvas that undergoes a natural dye process with slight color variations, each shoe is unique, Reebok said.
The Beatnik silhouette was originally introduced in the brand’s 1994 outdoor line, winning over shoppers with its shark-tooth like sole and closed-toe upper. Seeing its resonance with shoppers more than two decades later inspired Reebok to bring the style back last year, and it plans to release new color ways throughout the fall 2021 season. The natural dye Beatniks retail for $120, and are available on the brand’s website as well as at stores like Bodega, End and SNS.
For high fashion aficionados, Reebok continues its partnership with Maison Margiela with releases of the Classic Leather Tabi and Club C in a new beige color way.
The Classic Leather Tabi debuted in January, pulling together the influences of one of the brand’s most popular styles and Maison Margiela’s signature split-toe feature, which first appeared in the French fashion house’s 1988 footwear collection.
Reebok and Maison Margiela released their collaborative iteration of the Club C in March, employing a trompe l’oeil technique wherein the shoe’s upper, made from a single piece of leather, is printed with a scanned image of the original Club C and its multiple textures and overlays. The beige versions of both styles retail for $300 on the brands’ respective e-commerce sites.
For lovers of running and hiking, the brand debuted three trail-ready silhouettes designed to keep wearers moving.
Building upon its award-winning Floatride running shoe franchise, Reebok released the Floatride Energy 3 Adventure on July 8. The $110 running shoe for men and women is enhanced with durable features suitable for trail runs on uneven terrain, including a reinforced toe and heel made from recycled plastics and a supportive, energy-return midsole.
“To have one shoe that you can start with on the road and end up on the trail champions our mission in making running and the outdoors more accessible for all,” Keith Stern, Reebok’s senior product manager, said of the style. “With Floatride Energy 3 Adventure, it was our goal to create a shoe that provided value and versatility for any and all types of runners.”
Meanwhile, the Nano X1 Adventure, released the same day, expands upon the Nano X1 training shoe’s appeal by giving it an outdoor twist. The shoe was created to encourage consumers to take their workouts outside of the confines of the gym, the brand said, to enjoy weekend adventures and outdoor classes.
The style features an updated rubber lug outsole for maximum traction, a stretch ripstop upper that offers added protection from the elements while promoting breathability, an antimicrobial lining, a lace-lock harness for a secure, dependable fit, and bungee laces made from recycled materials. A speed chassis provides increased heel stability.
“More than ever, we’re seeing a huge surge in outdoor fitness and exploration from consumers of all ages and fitness levels,” Tal Short, a senior project manager, said. “With this insight, we set out to create a product that took all the fan-favorite performance benefits of our Nano and combined them with tech and design updates geared specifically for the outdoors.”
On July 21, Reebok and longtime partner and professional CrossFit athlete Rich Froning Jr. will release another version of the Nano X1 designed specifically for cross training. Based on Froning’s “Into the Storm” mantra, which he said serves as a daily inspiration for his workouts, the shoe features a storm-inspired motif.
“When bison see a storm, they run straight into it. They square their shoulders, brace against its power and keep moving forward,” Froning said. “It’s their natural instinct to face it head on and never try to avoid its powers, knowing they’ll be in it a shorter amount of time than if they ran from it. This mindset is an important metaphor for life.”
The $150 style features a new stretch bootie construction for optimal comfort, as Froning requested a shoe that could be easily slipped on and off. A three-tier lacing system and Floatride Energy cushioning round out the shoe’s performance features, lending stability to the athletic shoe.
Reebok also recently announced two collaborations with Hasbro. On July 19, the brand will reprise its Peppa Pig kids collection after the successful launch of a first line in February. Featuring five kids-only silhouettes, the line includes the Classic Leather, featuring bright pink glittery graphics, the Complete Clean, with dual Velcro straps and characters embroidered on the lace patches, the CL Jogger, with a glow-in-the-dark printed upper, laces and outsole, the Club C, complete with illustrations of Peppa and her friends, and the Weebok Clasp, made for toddlers. To ensure that the shoes are easy to take on and off, each style incorporates either Velcro or stretch laces. Starting at $40, the collection will be available on Reebok.com.
In late June, the Boston-based brand released a collection with Hasbro based on the ‘90s smash hit, the “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”. The show celebrates 28 years on the air in 2021, making it one of the longest-running live-action series on television.
The footwear line, which features styles for both kids and adults, includes five original silhouettes inspired by the Power Rangers and Megazord, from the Zig Kinetica II, representing the Red Ranger, to the Nano X1, inspired by the Black Ranger’s sleek look and agility. The Club C was revamped with white, silver and cerulean details to represent the Blue Ranger, while Reebok’s first shoe made exclusively for women, the Freestyle Hi, was re-styled with bright, berry-colored slashes to represent the Pink Ranger. The Club C was also reworked to suit the styling of the Yellow Ranger, with a wing logo on the back, paying homage to late actress Thuy Trang. Finally, the imposing Megazord was embodied by a retooled version of the Question Mid, with a black and yellow tongue and an M on the right toe.
The six styles, ranging in price from $100-$180, are packaged in shoeboxes designed to resemble different elements of the Megazord, Reebok said, and can be assembled together to create the figure represented on the program.