If Chanel Made Vans Skate Shoes…
Chanel’s Spring/Summer 2015 messenger bag was already an anomaly. Amongst the brand’s many sleek leather purses, this dirty-looking graffiti-covered military satchel sticks out like a sore thumb.
Ten years after its release, the now sought-after bag is distinct for another reason: This is surely the first Chanel bag to inspire a skate shoe.
Though Vans doesn’t express that Chanel’s gritty bag was on its moodboard, the parallels are stark.
Vans Premium Old Skool 36 Souvenir shares too many similarities with the messenger bag for it to be a pure coincidence.
The shoe comes with a blotchy green spray-painted upper overlaid with multicolored pink tweed detailing along Vans’ Jazz Stripe branding and the top of the tongue. This directly mirrors the Chanel bag’s composition.
Then there’s the pins. Attached to the classic skate sneaker is a range of pins featuring everything from peace symbols to Vans logos to messages advocating for personal space.
Again, this is very similar to the pins that came with Chanel’s bag.
Nicknamed the Chanel "On the Pavement" bag, the Karl Lagerfeld-designed crossbody was one of the highlights from that season. However, more recently, it has become known as a celeb favorite.
Lil Yachty, Bella Hadid, and Central Cee are amongst those who have been spotted wearing the hippy-coded luxury bag.
But while they will have splashed out four figures (or more) to grab the bag on the resale market, these sneakers will only set you back $125. And they’re available now on the Vans website.
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