Vans and NatGeo pair up and 3 other unconventional shoe collabs

Shoe manufacturing company Vans has partnered up with television network National Geographic to launch the Vans x National Geographic collection, featuring footwear and apparel to “inspire creative expression and ignite the explorer in everyone”. This launch comes in celebration of the 130 years of National Geographic’s never-ending quest to explore through “ground-breaking storytelling and scientific discovery”, as stated on the launch’s website.

Riding on the brand's appreciation for the environment, the materials utilised in this collection include organic cotton canvas uppers, recycled PET shoelaces and packaging. The collection includes unique National Geographic photographs with its iconic yellow border, and logos featured on six of Vans’ classic silhouettes – the Sk8-Hi Reissue 138, Old Skool, Authentic, Era, Classic Slip-On, and UltraRange EXO.

The apparel collection includes various styles and accessories embroidered with the brands’ logos, for both men and women, featuring jerseys, cropped tees, broadshorts, caps and tote bags.

Lately, there has been a series of unique partnerships between various sportswear brands and F&B companies. Take a look at the past collaborations:

Nike x Ben & Jerry’s

The summer collaboration between Nike and Ben & Jerry’s riffed off the Vermontian ice cream company’s pint packaging. Nike churned out a chunky rendition of the Dunk Low, featuring hues and textures that mimicked Ben & Jerry's signature packaging. The outsole captured the blue skies, bovines and green pastures seen on Ben & Jerry’s container, with colourful tie-dye patterns and bold text graphics on the shoe's insole and heel.

FILA x Subway

Featuring the iconic Subway logo and sandwiches, this collection included slippers with the Subway tagline and bags designed to look like Subway paper bags. The recipe T-shirt had an illustration of a Subway sandwich in front, and all the various components that go into making an Italian BMT or an Egg Mayo sandwich on the back. Meanwhile, the dabao bags showcased both brands’ logos on each side.

KFC x Crocs

This partnership had its limited edition clog made to resemble and “smell” like KFC’s signature fried chicken, designed to mimic wearing a bucked of fried chicken on the feet. The collaboration featured a white base complete with ventilation ports dressed in a fried chicken print, and co-branding appeared on the rivet holding down the heel strap, with iconic red and white stripes found on KFC buckets on the sole portion. 

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