Why were the Adidas Sambas the “IT Sneaker” of 2022?

If there ever was a documentary to be written on the Adidas Sambas, it would for sure be the story of - “rags to riches.” The reason for this is because its story would consist of how an old and unpopular sneaker paved its way to be one of the most popular silhouettes worn by some of the biggest street style stars of fashion. The sneaker originated in 1949, created by the Adidas founder - Adi Dassler. Its first version was all black, white the signature three white stripes along with a gum sole. This was done for the soccer players so that they could play on hard surfaces. The FIFA World Cup of 1950, was held in Brazil. In order to get the soccer player and fans of soccer to buy this pair of sneakers, Adidas used the marketing strategy of naming it “Samba.” This name was given after a traditional dance and a specific music genre of the Brazilians.

Their plan proved to be successful and over the years, the company constantly kept evolving the design and finally, today we see a much slimmer version of that silhouette. They also made a b breakthrough for it in the sneaker market for women and announced more colours. Around the early 2000s this sneaker was essentially bought for indoor soccer. Also, the reason for its growing popularity could be that the shoe went with everything you wore, it was light in weight and also it was the silhouette everyone wanted. However, the shoe’s popularity soon started seeing a decline because now it became a staple sneaker for fathers and men who had white collar jobs. These individuals obviously were not known for their style and this led to its unpopularity among the young girls and boys. During the mid 2000s, the young crowd started shopping Vans or Converse instead. The skater slip-on Vans and high-top Converse sneakers became the new style standard.

The Adidas Sambas were then regarded as the “nerd shoe” or in recent terms, the “Adam Sandler Summer Shoe.” In junior 2022, Grace Wales Bonner announced it’s 4th collection which was in collaboration with Adidas. This collaboration included a few pairs of Sambas which were retro-inspired. Bonner has been constantly revolutionising this sneaker with Adidas since 2020, and all their collaborations have sold out within minutes. Currently, they resale on websites like StockX for 800$ more than the retail price! The 2022 Grace Wales Bonner Sambas have elegant tones, contrast stitching, and satin lining in addition to the brand's distinctive vintage-preppy twist. They resemble something an eccentric schoolgirl would match with her pleated tennis skirt to do other than sprint through the mud rather than something a soccer player would wear.

The collaboration was timed perfectly to coincide with the growth of the "coastal grandmother," "weird girl," and "lazy girl" fashions, which were popularised by young women like Bella Hadid, who has worn the Samba consistently for years. When the shoe was released, Gen Z rushed to it, in large part because of Hadid's unrivalled ability to set trends, but also because it was the unexpected sneaker that could lend the essential quirkiness to any popular TikTok look. They also retailed for under $200, which is hundreds of dollars or even thousands of dollars less than the going rate for an It shoe sponsored by a supermodel.

 

The Sambas were everywhere, and they even made an appearance at Art Base in 2020 as works of modern art. Models like Kaia Gerber, Kendall Jenner, and Gigi Hadid, as well as major influencers like Emma Chamberlain, adopted the shoe as an essential piece of  their street style. In every case, the shoe evoked memories, and the thought of a stunning woman humorously donning nerdy dad shoes quickly became the ultimate It girl move.