Vans Revamps Its Classic Old Skool Sneakers for a New Era

If fashion is about looking forward, Vans stays true to its roots by looking to the past for inspiration. Case in point: The trendy sneaker brand just debuted the Premium Old Skool Music Collection, which offers a fresh take on one of its oldest and most iconic silhouettes.

The new collection celebrates the history of the iconic Old Skool silhouette, initially released in 1977 and the first to include the brand’s iconic side-stripe design. It includes three capsule collections influenced by key music eras that have defined the brand over the decades. The first, available to shop now, consists of a bold leopard pattern inspired by the punk and hardcore scenes of the ‘70s and ‘80s.

The second two capsules, dropping in early March and April, will look familiar if you grew up on the early internet. The Warped Tour was the motivating force behind two instantly recognizable pairs from the second drop: a checker-boarded option and another iteration emblazoned with a flame print. The vibrant world of underground hip-hop lends itself to an equally bright selection of Old Skools in a third and final capsule composed of shades like creamsicle-orange, magenta, and an icy blue, all with the brand’s classic brown gum sole.

But the sneakers aren’t all old-school. The new kicks have been upgraded with enhanced cushioning, a more seamless fit, and ADC insoles made from 30 percent biobased Sola Foam. Glossy sidewalls, retro branding, and higher foxing tape set the stage for a new era.

To find the perfect design for each decade, Diandre Fuentes, the head of design for Vans lifestyle footwear, dug through old catalogs, archival images, and tears from the internet. “I drew inspiration from what the artists and fans were wearing at the time and created a color or print story that romanticizes and captures the essence of that period,” she tells Marie Claire. Her personal favorite? Looking through old snaps of past Warped Tours. "Some of those looks were wild.”

Adapting them to modern-day sentiments wasn't hard, considering how prevalent Vans has become amongst a new generation of It-girls, with fans like Olivia Rodrigo, Jennifer Lawrence, and Gigi Hadid incorporating the brand into their off-duty ensembles. This newly minted marriage of skate culture and fashion did surprise Fuentes. “Trends are not linear. Folks are comfortable creating their own style playbooks unbound from past restrictions,” she says. “The Old Skool is adaptable enough that you can really make it your own, but it’s loaded with so much cultural richness that’s linked to skate culture, and you can lean into that and wield it if you want to."

I got to see some of those unearthed references for myself at Van's star-studded two-day summit held in Los Angeles ahead of the official launch, where the perfectly faded photos were on display right alongside Vans’s high-voltage new campaign that featured new icons like The Paranoyds, Little Simz, HiTech, and Voice of Baceprot. The event also included insights from Vans's in-house archivist and punk legends like Travis Barker, Black Flag’s Henry Rollins, and Bela Salazar of all-female punk group The Linda Lindas—all in line with the brand's boundary-pushing and nonconformist forward-thinking attitude.

The clash of old and new perfectly summarized what has given Vans such staying power: a blend of sticking to its roots and an eagerness to tap into the moment. “The Old Skool is an icon. I appreciate the beauty in preserving the heritage of this iconic silhouette, particularly as the footwear and fashion industry becomes more saturated with various looks and aesthetics,” notes Fuentes.

One aesthetic that will never go extinct? Being one of the Vans-approved cool kids.