Gucci x Vans Is Unreal (Literally)
Gucci and Vans aren't just collaborators in the real world: they're playing co-op in Roblox, too. I guess that doesn't really make sense because Roblox isn't a game you play cooperatively, I think, but you get the point.
On April 13, Gucci and Vans are taking the rare step to deepen the partnership that began with the collaborative, upcycled Vans sneakers that dropped as part of Gucci Vault's multipart Continuum collection, which also featured the likes of Collina Strada, Proleta Re Art, and Egonlab.
This doesn't mean more shoes (at least, not yet) but a proper team-up between Gucci Town and Vans World, the brands' respective Roblox domains.
Now, that also means very little for anyone who isn't fluent in Roblox, the immensely popular digital platform that's at once a game, a hub for creating content, and, well, basically whatever its users want it to be, hence the digital Gucci exhibit made on Roblox a few years ago.
Like that event, Gucci and Vans' Roblox link-up will yield in-game trinkets that'll presumably flip for similarly big bucks — this time, instead of purses, the duo are offering Guccified Vans sneakers and a backpack (in-game only, folks) to Roblox users who engage in an ongoing scavenger hunt (ending May 13) that explores the story behind the Gucci Vault x Vans shoes, which were all fitted with repurposed scraps of Gucci fabric and metal studs.
This is notable not just because it's, as Gucci's release notes, "the first time two global fashion brands of this scale collaborated on [Roblox]" but because it's a rare example of Gucci going deeper on one of its Vault activations, which usually only yield one-off clothes and accessories, never to be repeated or restocked.
The Gucci x Vans partnership feels utterly distinct from something like adidas x Gucci, which saw the two companies tease out an expansive collection of clothing, accessories and shoes over the course of an entire year. In fact, over a year after adidas x Gucci was first revealed, we're still getting new drops.
Gucci and Vans' partnership feels almost sudden in comparison, given that we didn't even know Gucci Vans were a thing until last month's random drop. But, as this Roblox moment indicate, Gucci x Vans has legs.
