The second drop of the Prada x adidas collaboration

UPDATE 31/08/2020: After the first drop, which took place last December 4th, Prada and adidas Originals will make their collaborative Superstar available for a new release, which will take place on September 8th. The second drop will see the Superstar (or Pradidas, as it has been dubbed online) in three new colorways: a white one with black stripes, a total black and a silver with sole and white details. This time the shoe will not be accompanied by a bowling bag and the edition will not be limited to a few hundred pieces - the sneakers will still be handmade according to a process divided into a hundred different micro-phases in the Prada factory in Montegranaro.

The second edition of the Prada x adidas Originals Superstar will be available in Prada boutiques, online on the brand's official website and at selected retailers.

Today, Prada and adidas have unveiled the first official look of their collaboration, Prada for adidas Limited Edition, whose release date is set for December 4th. The official images show a pair of Superstar sneakers, a historic model that this year celebrates its 50th anniversary, and a Prada Bowling for adidas bag, both made of leather, in the colorway "Optic White" and made in Italy.  Both the sneaker and the bag will be produced in a limited edition of only 700 items each, each item will be marked with a serial number and will be sold together as a set. Both items feature a double black branding and synthetic material details such as the shell tip and pre-formed rubber sole and the bowling bag nylon shoulder strap, whose silhouette is inspired by both Prada's Bowling Bag and classic adidas gym bags represents the trait d'union between the different traditions of the two brands.

The collabo will be available from December 4th on both the adidas and Prada website and in selected adidas and Prada stores. The brands have not released pricing information. 

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Last September when Prada presented two sneakers characterized by a knit upper featuring a contrasting print logo down the forefoot, many people saw a not-so-subtle resemblance to one of the most well-known adidas Originals silhouettes, the Hu NMD. The Prada sneakers were available for a limited period of time in a Tokyo pop-up, and quite soon also the sneakerheads forgot about it.
Prada and adidas seem ready to carry out a project together and to announce it was the Italian brand itself, through an Instagram post published in the early hours of Thursday, November 7th. The photo is rather enigmatic but suggests that the collaboration will involve a sneaker model. Portrayed in the photo is, in fact, a Prada shopping bag with two adidas boxes inside, one black with the Three Stripes logo and one blue with the adidas Originals Trefoil line. 

If those were just rumours, in the last few hours the collaboration between Prada and adidas has become official. The creative partnership of the brands generated from a shared passion for sports. The two companies have started their adventure together by going through their respective monumental archives. The first achievement of this union is the presentation of two Prada for adidas silhouettes that draw inspiration from the rich heritage and the iconographic legacy of both brands, paying homage to timeless classics. Designed for the sport, rethought for the street style and now turned into luxury items, classics of both labels will make their official debut in December 2019. 

The Italian fashion house founded in Milan in 1913, has progressively established at the highest level not only of the luxury market but also of the streetwear industry, thanks to the exquisite quality and refined design of its pieces, enabling them to meet the taste of a heterogeneous audience. Prada has never hidden its intention to expand along this branch, above all through the relaunch of its Prada Linea Rossa collection, a favourite among sneakerheads and street style stars worldwide. At its peak, this collaboration will translate moreover into the manufacture of technical sailing shoes for Linea Rossa, which will be unveiled next year. 

At first glance Miuccia Prada's giant and the German sportswear brand could not seem at more distant ends, both for their taste and for their fanbase - even though their differences have progressively got thinner - but a real point of contact might exist, and that would be sustainability. Over the last few years, both brands have in fact focused more on this topic, by taking concrete actions and changes in their productions. Since last year adidas has been collaborating with the environmental organization Parley for the Oceans, with which it has designed three sustainable sneakers made with upcycled plastic bottles: UltraBoost Parley, UltraBoost X Parley, and UltraBoost Uncaged Parley. In just 12 months more than a million pairs of these sneakers were sold, a quite striking result. 
On its part Prada has been focusing on environmental issues for quite some time, and after having announced a fur-ban last May, it has decided to pay attention to its benchmark fabric, nylon: along with the commitment to use only regenerated nylon from 2021, the Italian brand has presented Re-Nylon, a capsule collection made of six eco-friendly accessories both for men and women. The conversation between the two labels could, therefore, start from here, as they try to find a common language and aesthetic always oriented towards sustainability. 

Besides potential similarities and shared thematics, what is certain is the relevance both brands have among consumers. In the list of the most searched menswear items in the second quarter of 2019 made by Lyst, featured respectively in second and third position were an adidas sneaker and a Prada shirt, which was also in the fourth position with its iconic bucket hat. At least for male consumers, these are two of the most sought-after labels. Moreover, both Prada and adidas have been featured in the list of the hottest brands in the same period of 2019: consumers look for and want to buy items by these labels, and in terms of image and perception a collaboration between these brands could be massive. 

Many reacted with reservations to the announcement of a collaboration between Palace and Ralph Lauren, considered too different in languages and aesthetic, only to later turn into one of the most successful collaborations of 2018. We don't know yet what Prada and adidas are specifically working on, many suggest it might be a sneaker, but without a doubt, just the juxtaposition of these names generates unprecedented anticipation and expectation. 

While waiting for the official images of the adidas x Prada sneaker, thanks to the Sneakers Generator app you can let your imagination run free while combining uppers, soles, details, and colourways of the best-known silhouettes of both brands. The Sneakers Generator app is available on the App Store. 

Keep following nss magazine for all the updates on this unexpected collaboration.