Adidas + Streetmachine: 25 Years of European Skateboarding
Copenhagen’s hub celebrates a quarter-century with a football-inspired collaboration
The winters in Scandinavia are long and rough, but the summers are glorious. It’s no secret that when the midnight sun is in full swing, skateboarding thrives on the streets of the North. Originally opening in Paris in 1989, the now Copenhagen-based Streetmachine is (arguably and now officially) Europe’s premier skateshop. Holding a place in the city’s culture that transcends streetwear, fashion, art and skateboarding, the shop manages to balance this broad appeal while still bolstering the region’s core skate scene. Now 25 years on, the beloved shop and skate hub celebrates a quarter-century in business with their first product collaboration: partnering with Adidas for an aesthetically sound limited collection on par with the Danish city’s penchant for clean, considered design.
An athletic sensibility in terms of form and function are at the core of the three-piece capsule collection. The Vulc Adi Ease shoes (€80) were an easy starting point as—according to co-founder Anton Juul—it’s the footwear of choice for many local skaters. Paying homage to the region’s appreciation for minimalism and function, Juul opted for pared down colors and fortified the heel cap for a more structured, supportive feel when skating.
While skate rats at heart, the crew at Streetmachine are diehard supporters of the local football team F.C. Copenhagen as well. “We drew inspiration from vintage football jerseys and made subtle design updates,” says Juul of the jersey (€67) in the collection. “We put a newer collar on it and we kept it in the three classic colorways that represent many of the Copenhagen football teams: navy, white and black.” The clean and collected direction of this collaboration, along with the storied place of Streetmachine in European skateboarding, really make it stand out.
Released today, 15 August 2014, the collection is now online and in-store at Streetmachine, where limited quantities will likely move fast.
Images courtesy of Adidas
