adidas Originals X BAPE X NBHD collaborate to release POD 3.1 + NMD STLT

A Bathing Ape (BAPE) and Neighborhood (NBHD) have been pioneers in the Tokyo streetwear scene since 1993 and 1994 respectively. Their continuously evolving but instantly-recognizable designs have resulted in some of the most enduring apparel and footwear styles of the past three decades.

This season, the two brands team up with adidas Originals on two of the most popular contemporary footwear styles from the sportswear brand’s lifestyle offering, the POD 3.1 and the NMD STLT.

The POD3.1 fuses modern BOOST cushioning with design details from the decade that spawned both BAPE and NBHD, resulting in a perfect synthesis of heritage inspiration and forward-thinking. Bold graphics have long been a part of both BAPE and NBHD’s singular aesthetics, and they feature on the POD 3.1 for eye-catching effect. Each brand employs their own memorable graphics: a two-tone camouflage featuring APE head and NBHD’s skull and crossbones motif splits each shoe in half, while BAPE’s shark teeth and eyes are rendered across the outside of the uppers. A host of other details further elevate the collaboration, with an individual branding split across the front of each shoe’s lacing system and a checkerboard insole.

For their second silhouette in this drop, BAPE and NBHD take the NMD STLT as their starting point. A progressive, premium model, its minimalist styling, BOOST midsole and sock-like Primeknit uppers make the style tailor-made for today’s streets. While BAPE and NBHD maintain the minimalist silhouette and deceptively high-performance functionalities of the model, everything else about the shoe becomes bright and bold in their hands. The uppers feature a distinctive co-designed pattern, while a bolt of lightning yellow lends an unmissable splash of color to both the inside and outside of the uppers. The lacing system is also reworked, with a co-branded lace cover with bold letters and magnetic lace puller offering a sleek but striking addition to the footwear offering. 

 

Situated in the heart of Tokyo, one of the leading fashion hubs of the world, A Bathing Ape® (or BAPE®) strives to introduce Japanese fashion culture to the world. Since the brand's establishment in 1993, it has remained as a symbol of street fashion for more than 25 years. Thus far, it has produced iconic design items, original patterns and characters such as “APE HEAD”, “BAPE® CAMO”, “BAPE STA™”, “SHARK HOODIE” and “BABY MILO®” etc.　

 

 

For Shinsuke Takizawa, founder of NBHD, the primary source of inspiration for the brand came from motorcycles and the various associated counterculture movements. From this starting point, the brand has cultivated an aesthetic built on reinterpreted motorcycle, military and outdoor clothing, refined for an urban lifestyle environment and revered around the world.

 

adidas Originals x A Bathing Ape x Neighborhood will be available for purchase on April 19, 2019.