Taking the basics of the sleek, sporty, and easily wearable Tretorn Nylite — a sneaker that’s celebrating its fifth decade– the two brands re-did the shoe in three spring and summer-friendly colors. Between the garment-dyed khaki, olive, or grey versions, there’s something for every fan of casual sneakers — with a bit of history to go along with it. The release also celebrates the 125th anniversary of Abercrombie & Fitch. Given the retailer’s exploration and adventure-heavy history, the dusty color palette and classic silhouette is a distinctive and thoughtful nod to the brand’s past.
The palette itself was designed in-house at Abercrombie’s innovation and design center and plays off the brand’s own color inspiration for the spring season. Where you might see lots of light blues, reds, or dusty pinks with other brands, it’s the lighter, earthen, color palette that has us loving these kicks.
“We loved the idea of partnering with another iconic brand, combining our own individual aesthetic attributes to create a unique new product,” said Aaron Levine, Senior Vice President of Design for Abercrombie & Fitch. “Both brands have this incredible history, so it was an organic process creating the collection.”
Levine’s love of heritage styles reinvented with a modern twist has contributed to the brand’s ongoing revamp, with a collection that now features the likes of handsome leather bombers, washed chambray shirts and slim denim — without as many A&F logos of years gone by. The best summer sneakers can definitely fit in with the brand’s new basics — that much is true.
It’s fitting that the kicks could easily complement a head-to-toe outfit of Abercrombie & Fitch gear — that wasn’t so easily done in years past. And the collaboration has proved a great fit in more ways than one, said Natasha Fishman of Authentic Brands Group, the company behind Tretorn.
“The team has done a great job of keeping the Nylite’s classic lines intact while refreshing the look with new, on-trend colorways,” she said. “There is a clear synergy between Tretorn’s classic shoe and A&F’s signature style which helps to reinforce the Nylite as a modern classic.”
Among the words that spring to mind besides modern and classic, affordable definitely rings a bell, too — and that’s great news for guys looking for a sneaker upgrade on a budget. Each of the collaboration’s three colorways will set you back just $70 — at that price, you might as well buy two pairs — or all three — and switch them out as you see fit.
The olive green version would be a bit of a monochromatic complement to khaki chinos and a white pocket tee on a weekend stroll and the grey version should sit cleanly underneath faded denim and a navy blazer — for $70, that’s as versatile as it gets.
The best designs sometimes bring the past forward to the present — that’s the case with this collaboration, and you’d do well to give it your full attention this spring and summer.
