The French fashion house Dior has collaborated with the traditional German company Birkenstock. The shoe designs that resulted from the collaboration pay homage to founder Christian Dior and his passion for gardening.
Christian Dior’s passion for gardening is reflected in the use of rustic materials such as felt and suede. Matching this is a model with a floral pattern – also based on Dior’s couture. The collaboration includes two models – the Tokio Mules and the Milano Sandal – primarily in the light gray for which the house of Dior is known. The ergonomically shaped insoles are made of Birkenstock’s typical cork material. Dior’s Oblique pattern meets Birkenstock’s bone pattern on the underside of the sole. A sporty buckle brings an on-trend streetwear detail, a language that Dior Homme creative director Kim Jones likes to use. In a statement Monday, Dior described the collaboration as a “contemporary ode to function and elegance.”
The collaboration was presented during the Fall-Winter 2022 men’s fashion show in Paris. On the day of the fashion show, the House of Dior not only celebrated its 75th anniversary, but also the symbolic 117th birthday of the fashion designer, who propagated new silhouettes with his “New Look” in the 1950s.
Birkenstock was founded in 1774. Within the last ten years, the brand has freed itself from its functional and practical reputation and has become a label with a cosmopolitan cult factor. Since then, Birkenstock has entered into numerous collaborations with designers, including with Jil Sander, Proenza Schouler and Rick Owens. Birkenstock has been owned since October majority of the investment company L Catterton and Financiere Agache. Financiere Agache is a company of the Arnault family, which also owns a large part of the shares of Dior’s parent company LVMH.