Hasta La Ideas

The latest collaboration spotlights some talented role models

Featuring sneakers and apparel for kids and adults of all genders, the latest adidas Originals + Girls Are Awesome capsule collection is a celebration of the women-centric media platform and its dedication to representation. Through events, partnerships and storytelling, Girls Are Awesome (helmed by CEO Pia Hagen and brand director Søs Bondo) hopes to increase visibility and bolster voices of women and girls—with the belief that doing so will lead to a more equitable society.

The collection—which includes two takes on the iconic Superstar sneaker (the Superstar Up and Superstar 360) as well as pastel overalls, coach jackets and T-shirts—is accompanied by a campaign highlighting talented role models that Girls Are Awesome admires: freestyle footballer Maymi Asgari, wheelchair basketball player Nagwa Brown, skateboarder/photographer Laura Kaczmarek, artist Simone Klimmeck, musician Kinck, rappers and music coaches Silhouette and Q.Marzi, singer Melissa Inya and actor May Simon.

Bondo tells us, “We always work with role models. For the shoot we wanted to gather a group of role models from within the four areas both brands work within: music, sport, art and culture. We selected a group of amazing people from our extended family who we feel encapsulate the vibe of what we stand for, at the same time standing strongly on their own as they’re all such great characters, good people, and all of them are so talented. These are our friends and they inspire us every day.”

While the platform also has their own small collection of apparel, Bondo says designing with adidas was an entirely different endeavor. “It was a first for us!” she says. “We had sessions with the adidas Original design team and co-created the line together. We started with a full range of colors and tried so many directions. We knew we wanted it to be bright, positive, playful and a bit street-y with bold details like the iridescent and bright orange. But to be honest, it took a minute to find the right colorways. We are so happy about the end result, it’s definitely as energetic, playful and bold as we wanted.” Many items employ pops of orange and purple—a color commonly associated with feminism and the celebration of women.

The ongoing partnership with adidas (which began in 2017) has drawn a lot more attention to Girls Are Awesome, and Bondo says the support has been immense. “We have been able to realize a lot of projects, elevate more role models and expand our network in Europe. One project we did was help the amazing Simone Klimmeck elevate her career as a tattoo artist by arranging for her to meet and work with her own role model, Grace Neutral. We also helped her open her own studio. Now that we have taken the partnership global we have started on different projects from LA to Berlin and we hope to do more in the future. Besides the projects we do together with local role models and communities it is also a fact that the collab collection will give us a whole lot of exposure. A week from now people all over the world will be supporting our statement and vision, starting conversations about representation and gaining the movement and community of Girls Are Awesome, all by wearing the clothes and shoes.”

Officially available 22 April, the collection will be online at adidas and Girls Are Awesome.

Images courtesy of adidas Originals