This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Day 1 of Agenda Long Beach is in the books. While attendees eagerly await tomorrow night’s Emerge event, the showroom floor was full of upcoming product from a wide variety of brands in footwear and fashion. Get written preview of what we saw on floor and on feet and tune back in tomorrow for photos and continued recap coverage.
Retro Running
Though the Long Beach showcase focuses primarily on skate and surf, retro runners were in full-effect. Like last year, Diadora continues to open up their very deep vault, pulling out Italian models of track inspiration in rich lifestyle makeups as well as modern makeovers that use new, lightweight materials. While Diadora continues to come back by turning the clock back, longtime players in the lifestyle runner game like New Balance and ASICS are more focused towards the future. New Balance is continuing to use their REVlite technology to revamp heritage favorites, while ASICS is shifting the shape and silo on classic Gel Lytes while also bridging the gap between their lifestyle icons and modern performance running models. All in all, retro running isn’t going anywhere but it’s definitely going forward.
adidas Boosts & Air Jordans
Oh we talking teams? Not quite, but when it comes down to adidas and Nike riffing off each other and making moves, Boost models and Air Jordans still run the floor on Agenda attendees. The adidas Ultra Boost may be the shoe of choice, appearing in the all-white and all-black makeups on anyone and everyone. Kanye’s 350 Boost has also appeared in some abundance, with the recently released NMD model also keeping Boost in rotation. To no surprise, the holiday season’s “72-10” Air Jordan 11 was also all over the floor, though the fashion focused crowd still appears to ride hardest with the Air Jordan 1 in OG colorways or 2015’s “Cyber Monday” makeup.
Neoprene Liners & Scaled Down Silos
Every so often, a shoe will release that will completely shift the culture and cause the whole industry to chase. We’ve seen it on the colorway front with the likes of the “South Beach” LeBron 8 or the storied run of Yeezy 2s. On the silo tip, the Roshe Run definitely introduced the lane of ‘modern, minimal, casual runner’ — a category that didn’t really exist before it but has mattered more than ever since. In 2016, it seems that the two shoes influencing the market as a whole the most are the Nike Air Huarache and the adidas ZX Flux. Both models have moved units to the masses and enjoyed long runs. The trickle down effect proves true across many brands and categories. When referencing the Nike favorite, the effect is mostly an abundance of neoprene sockliners for a Huarache-esque fit, but thankfully the silos as a whole are often a departure in general shape or direction. Conversely, the streamlined barely-branded look introduced by the ZX Flux (and perhaps paved by Roshe) has many a model ditching bells and whistles for a clean color block and slim shape.
Tune in tomorrow for more Agenda Long Beach coverage!
