Where is the next big frontier in the world of casual footwear? That is the question the fashion industry is currently asking itself, as evidenced by what we just saw at Paris Fashion Week.
Over the past several years, the sneaker world has seen trends rise and fall at what feels like a faster rate than ever before.
Air Jordans, especially the original 1985 release Air Jordan 1, once again reached heights of popularity after the 2020 Netflix documentary series on famed basketball player Michael Jordan, The Last Dance, renewed public interest in the brand’s historic releases. But in 2024, after years of scarcity, the brand is seeing even some extremely limited releases hit the bargain bin.
The Jordan brand, as well as Nike, also lost their greatest champion in the world of high fashion when Virgil Abloh, Off-White founder and artistic director of Louis Vuitton, passed away in 2021 at the age of 41.
On the other hand, brands such as Japan’s Asics and the US’s New Balance, long ridiculed as “dad shoes”, have found their way into fashion weeks across the globe, thanks to some key brand partnerships, celebrity endorsements and designer collaborations.
Adidas, meanwhile, has recovered from losing Ye’s Yeezy brand by embracing its heritage, with the adidas Samba becoming an unexpected fashion staple once again over the last 18 months.
But as popularity wanes on certain styles, each brand struggles to predict what’s next. As a result, low and high fashion continue to merge and interact in ever-evolving ways, and some of the world’s biggest sportswear and sneaker brands are finding ways to innovate – and perhaps chart their way forward.
Junya Watanabe x New Balance loafer
Junya Watanabe, Japanese fashion designer and protege of Comme des Garcons designer Rei Kawakubo, has a long history with New Balance, but the 62-year-old has never produced anything as bold as this shoe.
The designer debuted his autumn/winter 2024 collection at Paris Fashion Week this month. Of all the pieces he unveiled, this was the one that got people talking the most, taking the outsole of the New Balance 1906R – a popular silhouette that also shares a sole with the 2002R and the 860v2, the latter of which is also getting an upcoming collaboration with CdG – and merging it with a loafer top.
In doing so, Watanabe creates a shoe fit for any occasion, blending two of the most fashionable pieces of the moment for the sartorially conscious man.
Adidas x Brain Dead bowling shoe
Los Angeles streetwear brand Brain Dead, itself the brainchild of designer Kyle Ng, has also created one of the most unique shoes we’ve seen so far in 2024 with the Brain Dead x adidas bowling shoe.
Created to celebrate 10 years of the brand, the shoe is unfortunately not slated to become available to the public, as it’s currently a friends-and-family exclusive.
Travis Scott x Jordan 1 golf trainer
On the face of it, a blend between an iconic basketball shoe in the Jordan 1 and the sport of golf seems unusual, but a look into the life of the man who founded the brand makes this golf shoe make sense.
An avid fan of the sport, no one is more likely to wear a Jordan golf shoe than Michael Jordan himself. What makes this one more curious is the addition of rapper Travis Scott, whose stamp on the golf shoe, which also comes with a reversed Nike Swoosh logo, has already put it into a realm far exceeding the usual reaches of links-wear.
Asics x Miyashita Chelsea boot
This collaboration with designer TAKAHIROMIYASHITATheSoloist, usually shortened to Miyashita, may be the place that Watanabe got the idea for his New Balance, as it takes the outsole of the Japanese sportswear brand’s Quantum 360 VII and marries it with a Chelsea boot top.
According to the designer, the boot, which launched under the radar in 2022, was also inspired by his admiration for The Beatles, who wore the boot back in the 1960s and turned it into quite the fashion item at the time for Beatlemaniacs.
MSCHF AC.1 Help I Broke My Foot
The brand MSCHF continues to live up to its name, as it's followed up its big red boots with a shoe that is styled like a medical accessory.
“Let’s push the envelope on what footwear is. Footwear should be anything that you wear on your feet,” says the brand’s founder, who constructed it with so-called WowComfy! Technology and a dual-airbag ankle support system.
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
- Argyll and Bute, Scotland
- Fife, Scotland
- Tower Hamlets, London
Meydan race card
6pm Dubai Trophy – Conditions(TB) $100,000 (Turf) 1,200m
6.35Dubai Trophy – Conditions(TB) $100,000 (Turf) 1,200m
1,800m
7.10pm Jumeirah Derby Trial – Conditions (TB) $60,000 (T)
1,800m ,400m
7.45pm Al Rashidiya – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,800m
8.20pm Al Fahidi Fort – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,400m
8.55pm Dubawi Stakes – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,200m
9.30pm Aliyah – Rated Conditions (TB) $80,000 (D) 2,000m
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
Pieces of Her
Stars: Toni Collette, Bella Heathcote, David Wenham, Omari Hardwick
Director: Minkie Spiro
Rating:2/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
