Vans has a surprising new retail partner.
This week, a selection of Vans sneakers popped up on the website and app for fast fashion retailer Zara with a “coming soon” banner featured on the product’s landing page.
First thought to be one of the shoe brand’s many tie-ups, a Vans representative confirmed in a statement sent to FN that its shoes are now offered on the retailer’s website but stopped short of calling it a collaboration.
“This is not a collaboration,” the rep said in the statement. “Zara is carrying select Vans products as part of its seasonal assortment through our wholesale partnership. We’re pleased to have Vans represented with select retail partners that help extend the brand to broader audiences.”
At the time of publication, there are three Vans sneaker styles featured on Zara’s U.S. e-commerce platforms. Dubbed the “Zara Vans Sneakers,” the description of the shoes calls the offering a “special collection” and are versions of the footwear brand’s signature Authentic shoe.
The first shoe features an upper crafted in “Black” leather with a suede finish, while the second is made with a “Bone White” suede-finished leather upper. Finally, the third version of the Vans Authentic sneaker is a “Black” fabric upper with contrast topstitching. All models feature a lace-up closure, round toe and rubber waffle sole. The leather versions retail for $89.90, while the canvas upper retails for $69.90.
The news comes as Vans continues to work on its turnaround efforts. Indeed, strong trends at Vans, and positive data points from Timberland, has some analysts rethinking the outlook for parent firm VF Corp. Within the past week, three analysts have upgraded their view on VF.
As for Zara, this new partnership comes as the retailer is doubling down on its collaboration strategy. Late last month, the fast fashion retailer released the first Re{form} Zara collection designed by John Galliano.
Zara revealed a two-year collaboration with Galliano in March. It sees the maverick, controversial couturier create seasonal collections over the next two years working directly with clothes from the retailer’s past seasons, “deconstructing and reconfiguring them into new seasonal expressions and creations,” according to the Spanish fashion giant.
March also saw the surprise release of a new collaboration with Willy Chavarria. The duo’s “Vatisimo” collection featured 100 pieces of menswear and 50 pieces of women’s apparel, accessories and jewelry. To introduce the one-time collaboration, Chavarria, alongside Glen Luchford, directed a film featuring supermodel Christy Turlington and actor Alberto Guerra.
The retail giant also has an on-going collaboration with menswear design darling Aaron Levine and has released capsule collections with Bad Bunny, Marisa Berenson, Fruit of the Loom, Baisi Guadagnino and more.