These Vans Come Pre-Duct-Taped If You’re Stuck On That Distressed Aesthetic

If you’ve ever owned a pair of sneakers that you wore to the point where they needed to be duct-taped, you may have probably thought of tossing them into the trash and getting a shiny new pair. While loved-to-death pieces like these might have your mother begging you to throw them away, Vans believes they’re about to give you extra street cred.
 
The distressed aesthetic has pretty much been a recurring trend seen throughout skater fashion, and it usually consists of t-shirts and jeans with strategically placed rips and beaten-up old Vans. Or in the case of the Vans Vault’s latest offering, pre-duct-taped sneakers.

The Lux Duct Pack comes in three variations: Vans Vault Slip-On in a checkerboard pattern, and two Vault Half-Cabs in black and white. The sneakers are decked in canvas with leather uppers and, from a distance—a very far distance, that is—look just like any ordinary pair of kicks. But up close, one can see just how pre-worn these look, right down to the dirtied laces and patches of tape plastered over them to make them look like they’re falling apart, because who wouldn’t want that in a new pair of sneakers?

Highsnobiety points out that brands such as Golden Goose have tried to sell taped-up shoes before but were met with some resistance as customers had lamented that the designs were making a mockery of poverty.

In Vans’ case, the tape isn’t so much a take on the current socio-economic state but a nod to skateboarding culture.

If you want to cop a pair of sneakers that look like they’ve seen more time at the half-pipe than in the shoe box, you can find them online through Billy’s, a Japanese retailer, for a starting price of US$130 beginning July 19.
 
 
 
[via Highsnobiety and Billy’s, images via Billy’s]