This Weirdly Normal Sandal Is Balenciaga's Post-Demna Sneaker Vision

There’s no need to queue up at Balenciaga's newly opened health bars to get a taste of where its creative director, Pierpaolo Piccioli, is taking the brand. All you need is an internet connection and access to a web browser (though, to be fair, a marine collagen smoothie might've hit different in a heatwave). 

Balenciaga put its Hike Sandal Sneaker up for pre-order, and the most shocking thing about this new shoe is that it’s almost… normal? Well, as normal as you can go in the wild world of sneaker-sandals.

Were it not for the $850 price tag, the Hike Sandal Sneaker might fit into the shelves of your local Dick’s Sporting Goods store. Almost. 

Laying some praise on plainness might feel counterintuitive, but for a brand like Balenciaga, whose footwear output could best be described as “freaky as hell” over the past few years, Piccioli’s strategy of giving simple shoes a slight Balenciaga twist (without overdoing it) feels like a seismic shift (and proves that the designer can teach the old luxury brand new tricks). 

After years of Demna out-freaking himself with shoe after shoe that incorporated everything from Crocs to soles so stretched they looked like bad botch jobs (or overstacked sandwiches), the Hike’s rubber straps and mesh ventilation cutouts, the interlocking elastic and heavy-duty (but mercifully normal-sized) sole, all make for a refreshingly plain shoe — words I never thought I’d say again about Balenciaga. 

In an industry that seems intent on riding the fumes of old Balenciaga and trotting out the most freakish little foot vehicles imaginable (sorry, but the ASICS GEL-1130 Mule is simply ungodly), I’m almost convinced by this new Piccioli run. His other recent shoe release, the packable “pocket sneaker,” dechunked the usual Balenciaga silhouette, cleverly and quietly preparing the brand for its sportier, more GLP-1, peptide-stack-friendly chapter. 

In a way, it’s like attempting to run again after years spent skulking around in oversized, bloated clothes; Piccioli’s push into sportswear has been shaky to start, and launching a TechWear line of tracksuits and bike shorts with a smoothie bar risks feeling dated, but the surprisingly sober take on a hiking sandal proves he has legs to stand on.

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