Photo: Balenciaga
Balenciaga’s newest sneakers are leaning into the term “streetwear.”
The limited-edition style had some shoppers raising their eyebrows, though, between the severely worn-out look and the $1,850 price tag.
“Balenciaga is really charging people $1850 for the pair of torn up converse that my ma begged me to throw out when I was in high school,” one Twitter user commented.
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The new shoes, currently available for pre-order on the Balenciaga website in white and black colorways, feature torn cotton uppers, vulcanized souls, and a graffitied Balenciaga logo playing off the permanent marker doodles often seen on rubber soles.
The price tag on the “full destroyed” version of the sneakers is almost double their original model, a classic high-top that retails for $625 and comes in red, white, and blue.
Rounding out the collection, Balenciaga also released a backless, mule version of the sneaker, also available in red, white, and blue. The mules are the least expensive design from the Paris direction, costing $425.
Some users also expressed frustration over the high price for purposefully distressed clothing, with one calling out the brand for their “poverty-chic” style choices.
“Balenciaga’s new “distressed” range of shoes starting at $625 is basically the rich cosplaying as poor,” another Twitter user commented.
However, amidst the controversy, some users pointed out Balenciaga’s design team had created a new style that got people talking, regardless of how.
“Balenciaga used this as a marketing strategy to make people talk and create content to promote the product,” one usercommented.
Regardless of the planning that went into the Paris collection, most fans couldn’t help but joke that, if they dug around in their closet, they could find a pair of shoes that resembled the pricey new collection.
One user evenhilariously compared the sneakersto “the shoes you would wear when you had to help bring in the groceries and couldn’t find your shoes.”
source: people.com
