FLUID SOLES; AN EXCHANGE WITH SUICOKE

Pt. 1

Sunny sky and green grass are the epitome of summer, a representation of abstract beauty within nature; in these green and blue boundaries lies a vibrant choice that dictates our footgear enjoyment. Within the sandal’s realm, Suicoke has taken the throne for comfort and style with its incredible array of innovative choices that are capable of ranging from luxury formal wear to all-condition gear.

Suicoke was founded in 2006, not as a sandal maker but rather a company that at the time created small editions of accessories and dolls which were decorated by hand, one of their best-known products were a series of Matryoshkas which were produced in Russia and they were one of the first items to be mentioned in magazines outside of the Japanese market. As a brand, Suicoke has always strived for quality and comfort within their product and in 2020 their success is greater than ever, as long-standing garments are produced from these brand beliefs.

One of the core principles Suicoke stands on is creating products that can stand for themselves without the need to accredit a designer behind a set style, allowing products to become timeless and untouchable as they are not affected by the human process. This strategy removes human error from a garment equation, if a new style is successful is due to how well it has been made, not someone’s image pushing it forward.

Through this conscious choice, Suicoke holds a position in which they can dictate how their sandals are experienced, a small part of its popularity was derived through the incredible collaborative work Suicoke has been able to create to engage with different audiences.

Pt. 2

In recent years collaborations between brands have fruited pieces that have pushed forward what the fashion standard is, and Suicoke has been able to veer an entire industry by collaborating with various brands, artists and creative studios.

Concrete Objects is a collaborative conversation between designers Samuel Ross & Jobe Burns, their appreciation for brutalist forms has led both designers down a path of experimental pieces that gives an architectural style a new field in which to express itself. Suicoke saw the potential of allowing two amazing designers that work with raw, grey and robust material ideologies to create a pair of sandals that re-defined how brutalism and clothing could work together. Grey suede and leather are a core part of the sandal’s look taking characteristics from the many large-scale brutalist concrete building, finished with a resin and steel pull tab which can be seen as a new step within the brutalism style, using materials that match the aesthetics of the originally used materials.

The exuberant and colourful personality of Tyler, The Creator is one of the many factors in the popularity of his clothing brand Golf Wang. In 2018 Tyler teased a potential collaboration between Golf Wang and Suicoke in a surprise video for his track “435”, which became reality that same summer.

The first of many silhouettes reworked by Tyler and the Golf Wang team, which are now a staple in the sandal world. Using colours found in the clothing line to create the collaborative pieces, Tyler was able to reflect his personality in the reworked sandals which have been dressed in bright yellow, baby blue and peach throughout a series of different styles.

Within the fashion world collaborations feel established, brands collaborating it’s not the new hype, from furniture brands creating work with high fashion houses to ice cream makers creating shoes with clothing brands, we have seen the potential that two brands can generate. 

Constantly creating products that are beneficial for the development of new design styles, materials and ideologies is a skill not many brands can consistently bring to the table, resulting in many joint pieces feeling as if they live in their own world. 

One of the most prominent collaborations to date has been Suicoke’s commitment to using Vibram for their sandal’s sole. From a technical point of view Vibram has been able to enhance the experience customers receive when purchasing a sandal, from slip-resistance to waterproofness Vibram elevates Suicoke’s sandals to a higher standard which is necessary to justify the near luxury price point for its products.

Suicoke has been able to innovate their sandals with each collaborative iteration, from colour to style and materials, we can trace a clear journey within the company’s history that shows their now asserted dominance in the sandals game after having been proclaimed as the original creator of the chunky hype slides of 2020 by GQ.

Pt. 3

To find out more about Suicoke’s past, present and future we talked to Jinchi Leung and Enrico Pasi which are respectively the CEO of Suicoke and the General Director for EMEA continents.

The question we would like to start with digs deep into Suicoke history: 

Referencing back to one of the early Suicoke products, the Skull Matryoshkas, we wanted to ask about the back-story behind making accessories and how this turned into dominating the sandals industry?

JL: Suicoke is consistently challenging creative development and utilizing only the highest quality materials. We coincidently found a good production resources of Matryoshkas in Russia, origin country where developed Matryoshkas. We thought it’s fun to create skull designs with the dolls. But we don’t want to compromise once we decided to make products. This is same for the sandals too. Initial design always starts from quality and functions. We never begin with trend and products won’t controlled by surroundings. 

Seeing a boom in homewear during the current global health pandemic and brands modifying their products to match consumer’s needs, how does Suicoke see the sandal culture going forward in the current post-Covid-19 times?

EP: During COVID we saw a lot of people who used our sandals in quarantine, trying to create a cool look even if they were locked at home, most likely because our sandals have a great versatility, and you can use them from the beach to being at home, a bit like a track pant. I think this has once again strengthened the idea that sandals have now become part of our daily life in any season.

Pushing the limits of how sandals are seen in the fashion world moving from casual wear to high fashion, Suicoke has been able to create a new environment for sandals to live in. What is Suicoke’s next goal within the fashion industry?

EP: Our goal has always been to enter everyone's wardrobe, from the adult fashion, to the streetwear boy. at the beginning in many parts of the world people had forgotten the importance of sandals, then little by little we are managing to clear this dogma, certainly thanks also to the collaborations that have given us so much visibility. We are only at the beginning of this path and the road is still long.

The design team has remained anonymous since the beginning of the company, as the Sabukaru team consists of designers and writers, we do understand the clear decisions on choosing to only focus on the products being made rather than the people that create those products. Can Suicoke still give us a further insight into the design process behind their sandals?

JL: Unlike most of other Japanese fashion companies, half of our company’s staffs are from outside countries.  But we all work under 1 space to share creative ideas. So, we don’t really set a design meeting, but we share ideas when it comes up in daily basis. Nothing to hide we are open any thoughts. All these ideas will gather when we create new designs. 

The Orgy store in Tokyo has an incredible aesthetic behind it that seems consistent with the brand design beliefs, can you please tell us more about Suicoke’s physical appearance and the idea behind the store concept?

JL: The store consists of mixture of historical design furniture and customized display. We are enjoying that customers often ask if they can buy the furniture but not selling products. The building gives you unique impression because it used to be stationary’s warehouse which has an old commercial elevator. We liked this kind of vibes, the kind that makes you forget to be in a store.

Collaborations with other brands seem one of the many strong points of Suicoke, being able to produce incredible products with the likes of Bape, Maharishi, Golf Wang and Nepenthes. In our eyes the strongest “collaboration” still is the Suicoke brand teaming up with Vibram and the resulting technology infused sandals out of this fusion. What can we expect from this long-term collaboration in the future and what were the learning out of your work together so far? 

EP: In every collaboration we make, we are able to get an experience, sometimes productive, sometimes creative, and a very nice synergy is created between two work teams that come together. We would like to be seen as a blank canvas, where an artist or a brand can interpret his vision, a bit like a white sneaker. surely our next step is to have more and more collaborations with artists. We still miss a lot of brands that we love and admire, and we hope to collaborate with them one day!

Moving past what can be considered an already established fashion brand, it is joyful seeing Suicoke work with brands that are for the people and have a different kind of community behind them. How important are these culture-based collaborations for the Suicoke brand and can you please tell us more about the idea behind the Soulection Supply collaboration? 

JL: Soulection is still on-going projects. We are finding to incorporate such unique project into our collaboration schemes. Definitely we see different kinds of potentials compare to work with brands. It spreads Suicoke brand boundary and we would like to spend more time for both market and our team’s benefits. The very recent collaboration with HAY, Danish contemporary furniture brand proved to bring completely new impact to customer who do not know HAY or Suicoke. It was great synergy and hope we constantly show new approach to consumers.  

Thank you for A LOT FOR YOUR TIME

PT. 4 The Author’s Synopsis

Early September of 2019 is one of my first memories with Suicoke, it was the day one of my flatmates had just moved into our house during our final year of university, he was unpacking after having travelled from America. Out of his suitcase, like a magician, he pulled out a pair of Suicoke Urich, which is one of their chunky models made of rubber, and I was left speechless by the unapologetically untraditional shape of these sandals which seemed to follow the chunky dad sneaker trend of the time.

My interest in owning a pair of Suicoke only grew when I was able to test a pair in my size in one of the boutiques that stock them here in London, what I can now consider one of the most comfortable pieces of footwear I have ever tried and a moment in my life that would set a small seed in my mind that would flourish in a love for the brand and their products.

Fast-forwarding a few months, I end up at the same location where I tried them on for the first time, and while I was there I decided to purchase the same model that introduced me to the brand, the Urich. The silhouette, through experience, can be styled with an infinite choice of garments, making it one of the most versatile pieces of footwear I have ever owned; the sandals have been in my daily footwear rotation ever since I bought them.

From that day Suicoke has always been able to match my expectations by constantly releasing sandals that push forward the status quo, that try and reach a broader audience and re-invent how sandals are experienced in society while retaining their reputation for comfort and quality.

Providing a space for smaller artists, communities and creatives to have an unusual but effective platform to connect with the world, Suicoke stands for and does the right things in an environment where brands are constantly put under a microscope. 

About the Author:
Thomas is a designer from Italy’s Turin metropolitan area and currently residing in London, he specialises in visualising abstract concepts that bridge the world of theoretical science and design. Running, science, and sounds drive his love for life, surrounded by plants and positive people.