Salomon & Y/PROJECT’s Experimental Trail Shoe Is Seriously Scrunched-Up
On Y/PROJECT and Salomon’s Speedcross 3 sneaker, two French brands from distinctly different worlds come together.
Draping, pleating, and manipulating fabric is Y/PROJECT’s bread and butter, techniques regularly deployed in its inventive collections. However, for Salomon’s Speedcross 3, a hi-tech shoe engineered for trail running in 2011, it is uncharted territory to be explored.
While still built with its original grippy sole unit and streamlined shape, the collaborative shoe has a highly textured upper where an adjustable drawstring scrunches up an excess of fabric.
We first saw this combination of rugged trail gear and unorthodox fabric manipulation earlier this year, when it featured on the feet of a star-studded Y/PROJECT Fall/Winter 2024 campaign — the final seasonal collection in former creative director Glenn Martens’ 10-year reign at the brand.
Now, it’s ready to be unleashed. The Y/PROJECT x Salomon Speedcross 3 has been officially unveiled by a steamy Paris-themed photo shoot ahead of its release on October 10.
The shoe, which retails for $220, is one of the last chances to buy something from Y/PROJECT’s Glenn Martens era.
While there’s much excitement around what Glenn Martens’ next moves are, it’s a shame that his work with Salomon likely won’t extend beyond this debut Y/PROJECT collaboration — his experimental savoir-faire and Salomon’s technical know-how have proven to be a captivating combination.
