You are the company you keep and a new collaboration between longtime athletic brand On Running and Post Archive Faction is a sign that every good sneaker collab is all about picking the right partner.
Post Archive Faction (AKA PAF) is a Korean streetwear brand that was founded in 2018 and has since enjoyed nothing but come-up moment after come-up moment.
PAF’s signature outerwear epitomizes avant-garde design, with loads of dynamic lines, unexpected zipper closure, and fringed embellishments sure to be a safety hazard were you to actually take any of it on a ski lift. Not that PAF's clothes aren't made to be worn, mind you.
While PAF and On Running have decidedly different origins and attitudes, they make surprisingly good sense together, as epitomized by the collaborative sneakers, t-shirts, and outerwear.
The apparel is all well and good, basically a more approachable iteration of PAF's next-level wearables, but the highlight is truly the sneakers, offered in both all-white and all-black.
The sneakers reflect PAF's sleek design aesthetic with a stretchy upper fabric and “crooked” lace system that transforms the burly Cloudmonster, On's most stylish sneaker, into a pleasantly wearable statement shoe.
The resulting chunky running shoe has both On's reliable comfort and PAF's abnormal normality, making for something that's equally approachable and intriguing.
On has been producing its impeccably performance-focused footwear and high-tech running gear since 2010 but the Swiss brand has really been on the cusp of greatness as of late, with some excellent sneaker shapes just begging for a fashionable co-sign.
Like other comparably popular sporty sneaker brands — HOKA, Salomon — On specializes in shoes with very specific silhouettes informed by sleek uppers and a signature serrated sole meant to make running (or walking to the bodega) feel like “walking on clouds.”
On co-founder Olivier Bernhardt once said that as a runner and designer, he knew there might not be space for a new-looking running shoe, but that there was most definitely space for a new running “feel.”
Though On is popular enough to keep on building its revenue even after its much-hyped IPO, the company's sneakers get mixed reviews from running geeks on Reddit.
One recent complaint said that it's not that On doesn't make great running shoes but that “all of the people I see wearing [On] never run.”
Ah yes, a true tell that a sneaker is hitting its peak fashion moment.
And yet, until now, On's only big collaborators have been luxury label LOEWE and retail giant KITH. Great names, to be sure, but you'd think a brand as prestigious as On would have locked up a multitude of fashionable team-ups.
Thing is, On is more of a thing with the comfort-seeking public than the fashion set.
The On and PAF crossover is a perfect example of how to bring new fans into the flock, for both brands.
Their well-timed collection will pique the curiosity of both the running geeks and the fashion crowd alike, you see, potentially expanding their own purviews all the while.
Presumably this is a taste of things to come as On hopefully starts tapping more adventurous designers to remix its designs with stylish aplomb. First Post Archive Faction, next how about some other young talents?
Why not anyone, really? With product this good, the more the merrier.
