Nancy Bocken is professor of Sustainable Business at Maastricht University. For the Third Floor, she interprets the impact of the fashion industry on the environment and she shares tips on how both the government, sneaker brands and sneaker lovers can make more sustainable choices.
Still the sneaker's popularity remains undiminished, especially among young people. Worldwide subcultures keep adding specific models to their daily uniform. In the meantime, the styles vary enormously, but after 50 years exclusivity remains one of the most important values among sneakerheads.
Grime
At the turn of the millennium, the music genre of grime emerged in the UK. Both musically and sartorially, it was a rejection of the flamboyance of the jungle and garage music scenes that preceded it. Hooded tracksuits were paired with Nike Air Max models, dubbed ‘one-tens’ for their £110 price tag (around € 130). This look evolved into a monochrome uniform of black tracksuits worn with matching all-black Nike Air Huaraches, Prada Linea Rossa America’s Cups or Air Max BWs, as immortalised on the cover of grime artist Dizzee Rascal’s album Boy in da Corner (2003).
Photo Peter Tijhuis
Photo Peter Tijhuis
Cholombianos
‘Cholombianos’ refers to a unique youth culture in Monterrey, Mexico, named after a slowed-down version of Colombian cumbia and vallenato music. Teenage fans have developed a distinctive form of sartorial expression. They favour shirts and t-shirts with overt religious iconography, hand-woven necklaces emblazoned with names, and dramatically gelled hairstyles, paired with customised or colour-matched Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars.
Bubble Koppe
Certain sneakers continue to find resonance with youth cultures around the world, who create local identities despite limited access to the latest models. Forgotten and obscure Nike silhouettes with the design feature known as ‘visible air’ or ‘bubbles’ has found a following since the 2010s in the Cape Flats suburb of Cape Town, South Africa. Devotees, now known as Bubble Koppe (‘Bubble Heads’), started a Facebook group that has grown into a scene with regular events and meetups between collectors.
Photo Peter Tijhuis
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The sneaker industry is vast. It has grown exponentially over the last two decades and shows no sign of slowing down. In 2021, for example, about 1.2 billion sneakers were sold worldwide which is almost double the amount of sneakers sold in 2012.
Nowadays, sneaker culture is a global phenomenon, but it was born locally, even before the rise of the internet. The series Sole Origins takes you to the cities that have had a great impact on this.
In our sneaker dictionary you will find an overview of the most important, most used and sometimes just plain fun words.
Everyone can point out the sole of a sneaker, but what about the upper? Where is the mustache? And what do the eyelet and the aglet have in common? Find out in this sneaker anatomy.
In the 1990s, the sneaker gained a foothold in the Netherlands thanks to gabbers and bubbling, but a unique way of styling the sneaker also emerged in London.
When sneaker brands realized the popularity among young people, they tried to entice them by using musicians and athletes as role models.
Sneaker culture has become ubiquitous thanks largely to the influence of young people from diverse inner-city neighbourhoods. They have been instrumental in elevating sneakers from pure sportswear to sought-after icons of style.
The sneaker industry is environmentally damaging, but there are many hopeful projects to address these problems.
Most sports shoes that we now consider groundbreaking arose from solving core design concerns, such as traction, fit, stability, cushioning and energy return can help to improve athletic performance.
In the 1990s major sports brands ventured outside their comfort zone, entering into exclusive partnerships with small retailers and progressive fashion designers.
Sneaker culture has become ubiquitous thanks largely to the influence of young people from diverse inner-city neighbourhoods. They have been instrumental in elevating sneakers from pure sportswear to sought-after icons of style.
Few objects are as universal or as diverse as the sneaker. Which is one reason why the sneaker has become the undisputed cultural symbol of our times, bridging culture, design, fashion, music and technology.