KITH founder Ronnie Fieg's adidas x Clarks sneakers are some of the finest footwear collabs of the past few years. No explanation required: just look at 'em.
Fieg fused a platform-y Clarks crepe sole to classic adidas sneakers and, well, yeah, there they are. Impossible to buy at retail because, obviously, they sell out immediately.
So KITH is opting to make things a little fairer for its most devout fans by dropping Fieg's latest footwear masterpiece, the "8th St AS350 by Ronnie Fieg for adidas Originals & Clarks Originals" — catchy! — exclusively via its recently-launched loyalty program, KITH Loyalty.
KITH Loyalty rewards frequent customers with various perks, including first-dibs access to limited drops like this, which actually goes beyond the Clarksified adidas AS350 shoes.
This release is KITH Loyalty's second VIP-only collection and, like the first rollout, it's entirely made-to-order.
This allows KITH Loyalty high-rollers to order their exclusive clothes and shoes at their leisure until the window for ordering closes in early May, rather than having to digitally elbow their fellow sneakerheads out of online queues or skim resale sites for a chance to grab their coveted kicks.
It's a pretty canny upending of typical streetwear hype — typically, would-be customers either have to jump around between websites to find their desired shoes in stock, sign up for waiting lists, or wait hours in front of a store, only to be turned away at the door.
And by pushing some of its most coveted product, KITH is funneling users towards its in-house tech. Now that's 360-degree thinking.
Though KITH's much-loved adidas sneakers were once a general release that smashed the adidas Samba's upper onto a platform Clarks sole — and even returned for the holidays! — they're evolving in two different directions.
For one, they're no longer Samba-only, apparently. I mean, the adidas AS350 shoe still has terrace-y vibes but it's something new, though it looks just as delectable in springtime suede as the Samba.
But most importantly, KITH may lock these tall collaborative kicks behind its Loyalty program, making it imperative that anyone seeking a pair sign up. If ever there was a better excuse to go shopping at KITH...
