Visit any block in any major fashion capital—New York, Paris, Milan, Copenhagen—and you'll see some variation on the ballet sneaker trend twirling through local street style. Countless brands have released retro, slimmed-down silhouettes in the past year or so, from giant corporations like Puma, Nike, and Adidas, to luxury power players like Miu Miu and Celine. But according to a new sneaker collaboration between two sustainability-minded, celebrity-backed labels, there's still space to reinterpret the It-sneaker style of the moment—and to do it in a better way.
Veja, a leader in sneakers made from responsibly-sourced leather and rubber, and Baserange, an apparel brand specializing in organic knits for intimates, dresses, and more, joined forces this week on a new prima sneakerina. Both brands are aware that their chosen silhouette is of the moment. "The no-sole trend is a super interesting one, and very Veja, old school, and vintage," says Veja co-founder Sébastian Kopp. "But the challenge was to modernize it, to launch this trend into the future."
Meaning, this collaboration's spin isn't just a slightly iridescent fabric and new colorways. "We combined ecological materials that come from traced and known cooperatives in order to design a model that creates desire (everybody wants it), while keeping the design DNA of both design teams," Kopp says.
The Veja x Baserange sneakers are crafted from materials you won't find at your nearest Foot Locker. Baserange co-founder Blandine Legait specifically points to "Mesclat," a hybrid fabric combining Lacaune wool and organic French hemp. Developed by VirgoCoop, a textile cooperative in the South of France, "It’s one of the rarest, one-hundred percent locally grown and produced fabrics," Legait explains.
Recycled materials are also used throughout the entire shoe model, from the low-to-the-ground soles to the substitute-nylon uppers. That nets out to a ballet sneaker that doesn't only look en pointe; it's also made in a less energy-intensive, more eco-friendly manner.
Behind the scenes, it's shared philosophies that made Baserange and Veja natural partners for a ballet sneaker revolution. "We've also known one another as founders for more than 20 years. I met Blandine in the early 2000s, and our concept store—Centre Commercial—was among the first to carry them," Kopp says. "But the reason we wanted to do this collaboration is because of a shared vision, and the longevity of knowing one another."
Despite all that backstory, it took two years for the teams to find the balance between a sneaker's necessary practicality (all-day comfort and walkability, for starters) and an apparel brand's more "conceptual" approach. The results are four sneakers with a sleek, minimal silhouette that are easy to style—and easier to keep in rotation even when the broader ballerina market settles down.
Other ballet sneaker makers are likely to try pushing another trend before you've fully broken in your first pair. (Who else has seen the "sneaker wedge revival" propaganda?) Veja and Baserange were more concerned with creating a style for meditative walks and slow living; taking slim sneakers at your own pace, instead of trying to keep up with what everyone else is wearing. "For both of us, making our products with the environment and people in the center of the story was the most important," Legait says.
Even when the streets of fashion capitals say it's time to move on, this may be the pair to keep styling.
