Rombaut Takes PUMA's Slimline Sneakers to the Future
Rombaut and PUMA were never going to combine to create a conventional, run-of-the-mill sneaker.
On one side you have a sportswear label with a long history of creating wild sneakers and on the other a cutting-edge sustainable brand whose footwear line includes models such as the Alien Barefoot Boot and Embryo Airflux.
At Rombaut’s debut fashion show, held in Paris to celebrate the brand's 10th anniversary, the two brands debuted a left-field sneaker that they had been working on for a year.
The laceless shoe has a slimline shape similar to other PUMA models gaining popularity recently, such as the Mostro or Y2K Speedcat sneaker. However, while both of those models are early-naughts throwbacks taken from the archives, this collaboration looks like it's from the future.
Blurring the lines between where the upper of the shoe starts and its sole ends, PUMA’s striped branding emerges from the underfoot and connects with the sole unit at the heel of the shoe.
The area where the PUMA branding and heel combine is not attached to the upper of the sneaker, leaving the heel portion floating in mid-air. It’s an unorthodox way to construct a shoe but what else would you expect from PUMA and Rombaut?
Elsewhere in Rombaut’s runway debut, the Parisian brand debuted slimline sock sneakers, chunky cowboy-style boots, and its own take on the sneaker-loafer trend.
We’re going to have to wait a little while before the brand’s PUMA collaboration will arrive on shop floors, according to founder Mats Rombaut’s Instagram account they’ll be available in early 2025.
We've seen our fair share of wild PUMA releases lately, from futuristic Coperni collaborations to 3D-printed spiky sneakers, and this Rombaut collection is yet another example of the German brand's willingness to think outside the box.
