Nike raises sportwear fashion stakes with NikeLab collection
German designer collaborates with Nike for a futuristic urban winner
Now that virtuallyevery designer is including sportswear in their collections, athletic giants such as Nike and Adidas have had to up their fashion game.
Kanye West recently showcased his first collection for Adidas, and next month Nike releases its collaboration with hip Japanese label Sacai.
But before that highly anticipated debut hits shelves, Nike is warming up audiences with another capsule collection from Berlin-based fashion designer Joanna Schneider, which is the first of an ongoing series under its experimental NikeLab category.
While Schneider may not be a headliner in fashion circles, she has plenty of experience working in the sports industry, so the line fuses high performance with high style. Her past work has been known to reference the human body and its architecture, so functionality is also top of the list.
The collection features exercise staples that are designed to be worn during different stages of a workout (warm up and cool down), with a focus on styles that can be layered easily. Schneider created every pattern from scratch so that each garment changes form, volume and position to adapt to the wearer's body. There also plenty of specific details to ensure high performance from laser-cut patterns for breathability to lightweight bonded finishes.
Technical feats aside, the collection looks like something out of an magazine fashion spread. The colour palette is definitely more urban than classic (think greys and olive greens) with some futuristic shapes including the sleeveless draped cape (HK$1,599) which can be worn open, cinched or tied around the hips as warm-up skirt. The more adventurous can try the mesh-lined culottes (HK$799) with its asymmetrical hems. Even the leggings (HK$799) and bra (HK$549) look edgy, thanks to Schneider's art flourishes that highlight key muscle zones.
