Adidas is giving the icon an upgrade.
On Monday, the sports brand introduced a new line, Type A, under the original, a long-term lifestyle label that rethinks classic adidas items in premium manufacturing. Works from the first collection include Adidas Firebird tracksuits, sprinter shorts and bags from airliner aircraft, remade with leather and produced by the European Atelier. Cashmere T-shirt; and a luxury remake of the original Superstar sneakers, rendered in Italian leather and featuring cashmere lace with inspiration from authentic silver lace.
Because it doesn’t look perfect without accessories, Type A also offers jewelry such as earrings and chains with a trefoil logo cast in silver.
The brand’s archives have proven crucial to success over the past year as new CEO Bjørn Gulden led the company out of dire circumstances following the collapse of the Yeezy partnership. According to preliminary results reported last month, in 2024, adidas’ full-year sales rose 12% on currency-neutral terms.
“Icons have returned to samba, gazelle and campus,” Adidas Originals’ global general manager, Torven Schumacher, mentions the popular lineup of retro sneaker brands. “We feel that it’s the perfect time to talk about our most iconic products.”
Schumacher said the design team was given free from the usual constraints on issues such as costs and was told to come up with the most premium rethink of Adidas classics. Even the zipper pulls on the Firebird tracksuit are made of silver.
So the prices are also premium, ranging from $500 to $3,000. For example, Superstar sneakers cost around $800, while a full tracksuit costs around $2,700.
According to Schumacher, A-Type provides Adidas with a way to add new dimensions to archive items. Last year, the company introduced the Denim version of the tracksuit with the same intention as receiving the “amazing” response.
Adidas has yet to determine exactly when or how to launch the new product. First, we offer Type A to what we call “friends and family” including partners such as rapper Pussia T. Sports, fashion and entertainment include model Paloma Elsesser and skateboarder Tyshawn Jones. The company wants to see what the response is first, then decides how to go to the market with Type A.
However, according to Schumacher, we know from many partnerships there is a demand for higher adidas products.
“We definitely believe we have customers,” he said.
