Birkenstock will this week launch a key new sandal, the Zürich Tech. We’re told it’s a nod to the archive Zürich model but “sets the style in a new contemporary context while embracing the rich orthopaedic heritage of the ‘zeitgeist and purpose’ brand”.
The concept is “tradition meets innovation” with the new shoe that debuts on Thursday setting the original Birkenstock footbed in a “new contemporary context” and interpreting the distinctive design of one of its famous shoes “through today’s lens”, 60 years after the Zürich first launched.
This iteration of the closed sandal introduced in 1964 (at the time one of only two products with the famous footbed) has been “engineered for comfort and agility”.
As well as being derived from its ‘parent’ shoe, the new item is “inspired by the functionality of winter sports”. The classic brand buckle has been replaced by a monochromatic, adjustable black buckle.
The company said the “utility and look of the buckle resonate within the world of sports” while the sandal also has a suede upper and a lightweight EVA outsole, “which provides optimal support and durability without compromising on weight”.
The anatomically shaped cork-latex footbed and other materials are all lightweight.
That launch comes at a busy time for the brand which has just opened a “first-of-its kind” community studio and global brand-owned activation space in East London.
The Dray Walk Gallery within The Truman Brewery has been renamed ‘Birkenstock Studio: Walk With Me’ as it launches a series of multidisciplinary artists-in-residence in the capital’s creative neighbourhood.
That comes just a month after it reported revenues of €1.492 billion for the fiscal year to September 30 (FY23), up 20% as it saw a 6% increase in the number of units sold and a 14% rise in the average selling price.
Adjusted net profit jumped to €207 million from €175 million and adjusted EBITDA was up 11% to €483 million.
Copyright © 2024 FashionNetwork.com All rights reserved.