Salvation Army has hijacked the launch of the controversial launch of Balenciaga’s Paris sneaker, with its own ‘truly destroyed’ campaign.
If you are like me you are still flabbergasted by the launch of the latest and very controversial Balenciaga Paris sneaker, an intentionally tattered and torn high-top.
But it triggered a reaction from the Salvation Army, and that is actually a beautiful thing. The international charity launched its own ‘Truly Destroyed’ campaign, together with a website and fundraising initiative that spotlights sneakers – and shoes – that once belonged to homeless people. And all these shoes look uncomfortably similar to Balenciaga’s $1,850 sneakers!
The campaign mimicks Balenciaga’s website and imagery to invite viewers to “discover the collection.” The dirty, yellowing shoes are priced at €1,450 each and offer product descriptions including details such as “painful fit,” “detached sole,” or even “blood residue.”
The shoes are not for sale per say, but the website prompts visitors to donate to Salvation Army, which helps provide food, housing, and financial assistance to those living in poverty.
“The fashion world is all about how clothes and shoes look,” said Thamar Keuning, marketing and communications officer at Salvation Army ReShare. “The creativity and variety that comes with it can be wonderful, as is high fashion, or Balenciaga for that matter.
“However, it is also sometimes at odds with what clothing means to most of the people we deal with, and that is purely functional. The destroyed shoes of a homeless person opposite the high-fashion products of this fashion industry literally and symbolically reflect the inequality in the world.”
Related Story | Virgil Abloh’s Louis Vuitton X Nike Air Force 1 Is Finally Releasing
Creative directors Julio Álvarez and César García clarified that Truly Destroyed isn’t intended as an attack on Balenciaga, nor on creative director Demna Gvasalia.
“We have a lot of respect for Gvasalia’s vision… We understand the fashion world has its codes, and we are not here to judge them,” Álvarez said.
“If anything, we’re thankful they decided to come up with the limited-edition sneakers described as ‘totally destroyed,’ because that’s what sparked our idea: selling used sneakers worn by people living in the streets. Not treated to look destroyed, but truly destroyed, due to their tough life conditions.”
You might also like
More from Featured
Amazon Alexa Mimics The Voices Of Your Dead Relatives
Amazon is testing an experimental Alexa feature that allows it to mimic the voices of your dead relatives. Read that …
You Can Now Pin Up To 3 Posts To The Top Of Your Instagram Profile
Instagram will now let you pin up to three posts to the top of your profile page, including Reels, giving …
OREO x Pokémon – Gotta Buy Them All!
The OREO x Pokémon collab will stay as one of the most successful retail brand partnerships to tap into pop …
Street Fighter 6 Shows Off Its New Style With New Video Trailer
Street Fighter 6 will launch in 2023 but this new trailer by Capcom shows off the new more colorful gaming …
KitKat Challenges You To A Staring Contest With Cats, Owls And Even Goats
KitKat says it is time to have a break, and it is going to be fun as you will be …
Still Looking For A PS5? You Can Request An Invite To Buy One On Amazon
You can now request an invite to buy a PS5 on Amazon. If you are chosen, you will receive a …
Amber Alerts For Missing Children Are Coming To Your Instagram Feed
Instagram is rolling out a new Amber Alerts functionality to bring missing children alerts into your feed.On Wednesday, Instagram announced …
TikTok Is Testing Clear Mode For A Clutter-Free Experience
TikTok has begun testing clear mode a new feature that removes the titles and buttons when scrolling through videos.The platform …