Saucony Opens House Of Originals In Paris To Launch Colour Plus Collaboration

Saucony is a global performance running brand that is 125 years old, older than the more popular running and athletic brands fashion enthusiast flock to today. Recently, Saucony partnered with Colour Plus Companie for their second collaboration, resulting in the launch of the Grid Shadow 2, launched during Paris Fashion Week at Saucony’s House Of Originals creative gallery space. This happens on on the heels of the appointment of a new Global Brand President, Rob Griffth.

After the first collaboration of the Jazz 81 Saucony silhouette, a more traditional look for runners, Creative Director Jordan Page drew inspiration from the vintage Saucony boot. ‘The Trekker’ is incorporated into the earthy brown and forest green colors and durable materials from the 90s hiking boots into The Grid Shadow 2 design.

Originally a performance running shoe, it has been transformed into a trail running sneaker with an aesthetic influenced by nature, with material applications that mimic that. The ‘Grid 2’ sneaker is covered in beach tones and arctic-inspired color schemes, created to represent the freezing and sweltering natural environmental queues, complementing a natural environment.

“This collaboration came about via Fab Amorin, who worked in partnerships with the now defunct Greenhouse,” explains Page. He describes the moment, “[Fab] presented my brand, Colour Plus Co., to Jason Faustino at Saucony, who really believed in my creative direction, and the rest is history – I suppose.”

Page, who humbly speaks about the collaboration, has rejuvenated the creative expectations of the American heritage brand, founded in Boston, Massachusettes. “Debuting this project at Paris Fashion Week is major for me. I honestly can’t believe I’m presenting work in the same realm as some of the most celebrated creators and designers in the world,” Page says in his realization of the advantages of the moment and second sneaker debut.

Expressing his excitement about the future of Saucony, focusing on innovation and the influence of different product categories on each other, Global Brand President, Rob Griffith, speaks to the collaboration. “There are very few brands that can say they can celebrate 125 years, especially in our sector. [Saucony] is a truly original, authentic American running brand. From that respect, it’s been a great opportunity to acknowledge 125 years of innovation. It’s all been about innovation and community and the running sector.”

Griffith continues on previous collaborations by Saucony. “We celebrated the launch of the Dixon Trainer at the beginning of the year, and that was a 360-degree campaign, which resonated really well. We were so pleased with the results there, but equally, the story behind it was so cool. It was all about Rod Dixon, who ran the 1984 New York Marathon and came from behind to win in the 26th mile. [Dixon] spent time just before the run in our factories innovating his own product, deciding on what foams he wanted to use, and adding inserts into the arch areas. It was a great way of acknowledging that innovative spirit that [Suacony] had for so long.”

“There’s a great example here, where we have relaunched what we are calling ‘Retro Tech’ in the lifestyle area. And that’s all about taking some of our performance credentials and technologies from the past, which happens to be the ‘Grid’ technology from the early 2000s,” Griffith sums up the business efforts to revive Saucony’s existing intellectual property.

“Bringing shoes back that are specifically from our back catalog, but also looking at how we can reimagine that technology and those products, to make them even more contemporary today. We are continuing to make sure that we remain relevant to our communities, whether that be our run community or our, our fashion community.”

The House of Originals event opened on June 20, 2023, coinciding with the start of Men’s Paris Fashion Week. The event featured a special DJ set by veryADVANCED, the musical persona of Creative Director Page. The Saucony x Colour Plus Grid Shadow 2 sneakers will also be exclusively available for purchase at SHINZO Paris – with a global launch scheduled for the summer of 2023.