How Salehe Bembury Cooked up His Best PUMA Sneaker Yet (EXCLUSIVE)
"I never really thought I would see my name on a product," Salehe Bembury said at his "Imposter Syndrome Is a Gift" panel with Highsnobiety held during Copenhagen Fashion Week. Now, he's got a PUMA sneaker with his name on it.
Bembury's new Velum NITRO 2 running sneaker is a sequel model which admittedly is even cooler than the original. We got a first look at the upcoming all-pink colorway, which includes wavy mesh paneling and stacked soles featuring PUMA's nitrogen-infused foam technology and Bembury's signature fingerprint textures. Oh, and Bembury signs his name on the heel next to PUMA, of course.
It's freaky, fun, and fashionable. It's classic Bembury.
When Bembury joined PUMA in 2024, he was tasked with creating a new era of the brand's Hoops division, essentially. As one of his first tasks, he was to not only find the brand's next athlete but also make a new signature shoe. That same year, Haliburton joined PUMA, and his signature sneaker, the HALI 1, debuted in 2025.
"The NBA and basketball were one of the main catalysts for me wanting to become a designer. That's how I thought my career would start. About 10-plus years passed before I got to do that. And then I got to do that, and it was very emotional, and it felt very full circle," Bembury told Highsnobiety senior editor Jason Meggyesy during their conversation.
It's no wonder why everything PUMA and Bembury feels so very meant-to-be-y. They clearly have a great thing going here, and that goes beyond the courts.
In addition to the basketball efforts, Bembury also delivered cool, colorful PUMA football kits for the 2026 World Cup. Now, he's got his own nice running sneaker, which, dare we say, might be his best PUMA work yet.
The Salehe Bembury x Velum NITRO 2 sneakers are expected to release later this year on PUMA's website. So far, the model looks to debut in the pink colorway as well as a silver option, as previewed by Bembury in July.
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