Chitose Abe’s sacai issues collaborations so often that they often spill out beyond seasonal collections and into occasional pop-ups or standalone events. There are plenty of special things created for sacai’s proper offerings but there’s often just way too much for a single sacai collection (ahem, all those sacai x Nike drops).

Of course, the main event for casual onlookers is sacai’s ongoing Nike partnership. The collaborative line continues for Fall/Winter 2023 by way of several new sneakers that appear to riff on the Nike Air Footscape, debuted alongside sacai’s forthcoming collaboration with Carhartt WIP.

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Though they weren’t the main event at sacai’s January 22 FW23 presentation at Paris Fashion Week, sacai’s latest Nike collaboration was visible in several colorful permutations underfoot, bringing together the asymmetric lacing structure of the Footscape with chunky trek cues seen in recent ACG hikers (shades of Nike x Jacquemus, in so far as the core collaborative model is an obscure ’90s sneaker).

These shoes are a departure from sacai’s doubled-up takes on Nike’s Cortez, Blazer, and VaporWaffle, straying from Nike’s historic running and hoop silhouettes in favor of something a little funkier.

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Like certain other retro designs from other sneaker giants — adidas campus, Reebok InstaPump Fury — Nike’s Footscape has enjoyed consistent popularity in sacai’s native Japan.

There was an HTM model that revived the Footscape several years ago, for instance, and venerable Japanese sneaker boutiques like atmos and mita have all tried their hand at the Footscape.

Frankly, it’s a nice change for sacai to remix an unconventional Nike shoe, having delivering loads of more straightforward stuff for years now (remember, sacai’s first Nike collab was an Air Max 90).

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Alongside the new Nike sneakers, sacai FW23 also introduces a collaboration with Carhartt WIP, further ingratiating the workwear stalwart with luxury labels in line of its recent Marni collab.

sacai’s take on Carhartt workwear is typical of previous sacai joint efforts, epitomizing sacai’s signature approach to garment hybridization. Here, Carhartt chore coats are reimagined as knit jackets, longline faux fur-trimmed parkas, or multifaceted layering pieces with bomber-style pockets and plackets, complete with co-branded Carhartt x sacai tag.

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There are even chunky Carhartt-branded sweaters, taking the blue collar Detroit brand to stylish new heights.

It’s all part of how sacai brings these disparate brands into its own world, iterating new shapes atop recognizable source material.

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