Converse and Isabel Marant unveil shoe collab

Isabel Marant is known for her love of Chuck Taylor sneakers and that love is now being brought to life through her first footwear collaboration with the brand, a link-up that also heralds other Chuck Taylor developments.

The collab includes a new silhouette, the Chuck 70 Wedge, alongside a fresh take on the classic Chuck 70, and “honours Marant’s stake in fashion and her pioneering work around the sneaker wedge trend of the 2010s”.

The collection launches on 11 September at the Isabel Marant Turenne Paris pop-up, as well as at other Isabel Marant stores and the label’s webstore, plus converse.com and select Converse locations.

Converse said the offer is “anchored by Isabel Marant’s pioneering design and love for the Chuck Taylor franchise. The collection gives voice to rulebreakers everywhere. Underpinned by a dose of nostalgia, [it’s] the embodiment of two iconic brands coming together to create an expression of effortless luxury”.

Marant herself said that it reflects her life’s work and her brand. 

“The notion of ‘effortless luxury’ is quite authentic to me, my designs, and the meaning behind them. The word ‘luxury’ is used in too many ways, and you can get bored of it — it’s much more difficult to achieve something simple and effortless, of which you never get bored”.

The new Chuck 70 Wedge also marks the latest addition to Converse’s elevation styles, offering additional forms for consumers following the recently introduced DeLuxe Wedge.

The new Marant collab shoe has a hidden 2.5-inch wedge heel attached to the Chuck 70 upper and midsole.

Meanwhile, Marant’s take on the Chuck 70 hi- and low-top sneakers, alongside the Chuck 70 Ox, feature “key Chuck details infused with Isabel Marant’s design DNA, offering flourishes such as a frayed cotton and polyester Jacquard upper, the Isabel Marant logo in a raw-edge canvas overlay, multicolour pinstripes and laces, and a matching, translucent outsole”.

The company said the collaboration “also serves to kick off a new chapter of Converse’s inline heel offerings with a forthcoming Chuck Taylor All Star Wedge, which includes a classic Chuck design with a hidden heel for added height”. 

The inline silhouette will launch on 3 October at converse.com and select global retailers. And “as part of an ongoing elevation proposition”, an inline Chuck 70 Wedge will follow in the coming months.