Brand: Lacoste
Model: L001
Buy: Lacoste's website and stores
Price: $115
Release Date: Available now
Editor's Notes: When A$AP Nast starred in Lacoste's April 2021 campaign, he was kitted out in the heritage label's signature crocodile polo shirts and Tyler, the Creator-approved cardigans, so what was on his feet wasn't quite as important. Finally, Nast has a pair of cool croc kicks, though, by way of the all-new L001 sneaker.
The chunky silhouette is a fresh face for Lacoste, kinda. It takes some cues from an original sneaker design cooked up by founder René Lacoste, blending them with elements of an '80s tennis racket and some contemporary sneaker know-how. What results is a pretty appreciable spin on the retro kicks that are all but ever-present these days.
Something old, something new: that's the L001. It sports some subtle touches, like a herringbone-patterned midsole and embossed croc towards the heel, that salute to the brand's heritage but their clean lines prevent any notion of stodginess. Even the colorways on hand for this first drop — creamy leather uppers, brownish outsoles, primary color accents — call back to those bygone times that inspire much of Lacoste's recent output.
From adidas to Nike to New Balance, the OG basketball low-top is very en vogue right now. They're stylistically rooted in old-school court sneakers, mirroring the throwback themes frequently channeled by Lacoste creative director Louise Trotter.
It's wildly cliche to speak about how these sneakers can be dressed up or down and those shoes go from day to night (ugh), but semi-chunky low-tops like these really do possess an appealing versatility. Here, it especially plays nicely with the post-prep of Trotter's Lacoste, as Nast himself demonstrates with his velour tracksuits and trim corduroys.
