Talk about nominative determinism. When adidas Originals’ Superstar first landed in 1970, it revolutionised the basketball shoe – a literal game-changer. A second life beckoned in the 1980s at the centre of the burgeoning hip-hop scene, held aloft by Run-DMC. And now a long-overdue return under the aegis of Ms Grace Wales Bonner, whose endorsement previously did no harm to its roster mate, the Samba (more on which below). The British designer’s AW24 refit of the classic shoe features crocodile-embossed leather to compete with the trademark rubber toe box.

It’s funny how often items that set out to put function first, and are labelled “anti-fashion” in the process, end up becoming embraced by the fashion world anyway. You could say this principle applies to all sneakers, but certainly to Swiss disruptor ON, which ran as fast as it could away from conventional form and went on to fall into the arms – or onto the feet – of the likes of LOEWE’s Mr Jonathan Anderson. Korean design studio POST ARCHIVE FACTION (PAF) offers a further step removed. Its output focuses on futuristic, sometimes post-apocalyptic shapes and technical fabrics. Meaning its take on the already out-there Cloudmonster 2 – tweaked here to onboard inspiration from nature, specifically the flow of a river – is something to behold.

Another new colourway for Mr Kiko Kostadinov’s reboot of ASICS’ GT-2160 model. The bold contrast of deep azure and blingy gold doesn’t have to be the talking point here, mind. (Although, is it purposefully a melding of the two colour schemes – blue and black vs white and gold – of that viral dress from 2015?) This tricked-out running shoe comes stacked with technology. The addition of a pull tab on the tongue makes them easier to pull on, while the comfy GEL cushioning makes taking them off decidedly harder.

Another stripped-back rejig of an ON shoe, with further tinkering from PAF. This time the Swiss sportswear brand’s lightweight runners for technical terrain. And once more, the Korean studio leans hard into that technical aspect. The asymmetrical lacing system is even more pronounced here, turning a functional enhancement into a design flourish. And if the midsole lacks the towering height of the Cloudmonster, the trademark Helion superfoam and Missiongrip outsole are given a directional new look.