Spring colors are in full bloom this season thanks to the French sneaker label, Veja and New York-based accessories brand, Mansur Gavriel who teamed up on a collaboration that’s rooted in sustainability.
The collection merges the colorful aesthetic Mansur Gavriel’s known for with its minimalistic (and coveted) bags with Veja’s recognizable “V” logo-adorned sneakers in a new sneaker collab.
The brands gave Veja’s most popular style, the “Campo” a colorful twist, using Mansur Gavriel bright hues throughout the whole shoe, from the the laces to the logo.
The selection comes in four colorways that were “inspired by the rainbow,” according to the press release, and represent “an element of natural beauty.” There’s a celeste blue representing a clear sky, a warm yellow for sunshine, a soft neutral for sand and a rosa color for a vibrant hibiscus flower.
Breaking down what makes the sneaker sustainable, Veja stayed true to its traditional craftsmanship when producing this collection. These sneakers, like all from the brand, have a vulcanized sole that is bio-sourced. Veja uses up to 65% of recycled materials including rice waste, Amazon rubber, and recycled rubber. The actual shoe itself is made of ChromeFree leather, certified by the Leather Alliance, meaning no acid or heavy metals were used in the tanning process. “By simplifying the tanning process, the use of chemicals and energy is limited, the use of water is reduced by about 40%, and the use of salt by 80% — after tanning, the water is recyclable”, the Veja team told GRAZIA USA.
Mansur Gavriel has been working towards creating more sustainable options for its customers by using archived leather to produce upcycled tote bags (in hues that will match your new sneakers), and reducing the carbon footprint in production by making the packaging smaller and easier to recycle.
“We love that Veja as a brand is environmentally conscious,” Mansur Gavriel tells GRAZIA USA. “We are always intentional as it relates to design and uses of materials.”
Adding, “We admire Veja as a brand for its classic, minimal design, and feel an aesthetic kinship to our clean silhouettes and minimal yet thoughtful details.”
The Veja x Mansur Gavriel unisex sneaker ($175) is available for preorder April 7, and is available on both veja-store.com and mansurgavriel.com on April 21.
