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History of Chinese-style ‘frog buttons’, seen on viral ‘Tang-style’ Adidas jacket
Used in China for centuries, frog buttons are a key feature of a limited-edition Adidas jacket that has become a huge hit on social media
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During Shanghai Fashion Week in October 2025, sports brand Adidas unveiled a limited-edition “Tang-style” jacket that combined streetwear cool with Chinese aesthetics. It has since become a huge hit on social media and is expected to be a sought-after item for the coming Lunar New Year.
The tracksuit-like jacket, which is only available in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, has gained so much traction that there is even a version available for pets.
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The design is deceptively simple. What would otherwise be a plain zipped jacket, with the brand’s signature three stripes running down the sleeves, has catapulted into the spotlight with one eye-catching feature: frog buttons.
Known as pankou in Mandarin, meaning “coil fasteners”, the button consists of a knotted cord loop – the frog – and a toggle, often a bar or another knot.
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