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High fashion never rests.
The comfort shoe of the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a dangerous turn. Balenciaga has unveiled its latest collaboration with Crocs, in the form of a narrow heel, placed precariously on the sole of its trademark rubber clog.
The monstrosity was unveiled at the fashion house’s Spring 2022 “Balenciaga Clones” collection showing and immediately drew the ire of pandemic-worn social media.
“God has abandoned us,” wrote @sch_mittens of the heels.
“KILL IT WITH FIRE,” pleaded @chungf.
No price has been announced for the shoe yet — but previous attempts to elevate Crocs have crossed into the luxury sphere: Balenciaga’s $850 platform clogs reportedly sold out before even being available in stores, Complex reported.
The style apparently comes in green and black, and joins a knee-high rubber boot in the collection as well.
The ankle-threatening look marks the latest surprise boost for Crocs, which saw an explosion of sales during the coronavirus pandemic. Shares in the company — founded in 2001 and launched at the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show, of all unfashionable places — hit an all-time high last week, with sales surging to $460 million in just the first three months of 2021.
Adding to the buzz: A-list celebrities have flocked to the brand for their own collaborations, including Justin Bieber, Post Malone and Bad Bunny.
Fashion insiders previously credited the it-shoe’s rise to its function-over-fashion aesthetic.
“It coincided with resort Hawaiian-style shirts” having a moment, and is part of a “crunchy, tourist, granola-style backpacking” style, Noah Zagor, senior menswear editor at WGSN, recently told The Post.
He linked consumers’ embrace of the bulbous, aggressively unattractive shoes with the larger dad-core trend in fashion.
But now, everything’s changed. With its narrow heel and high fashion branding, the Balenciaga look has shaken all that was near to us during lockdown — gardens, sweatpants and house shoes among them.
Many rightly wondered if Balenciaga was trolling an already-fatigued 2021 with the style. The spring show itself did bill itself as a “deep fake runway” and a “commentary on the uniformity of trends and their diminishment of individuality,” Hypebeast reported. However, the style itself is here to stay, as evidenced by the brand’s loyalty to Crocs dating back to its first collaboration in 2017.
“We were inspired by Crocs and we worked with them on a Balenciaga reinterpretation,” creative director Demna Gvasalia told French Vogue in 2017, calling Crocs the “world’s comfiest shoes.”
“Balenciaga x Crocs isn’t impossible, the question of taste is a very subjective value.”
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