This surprising union is one for the history books, because when performance fuses with fashion the result is shockingly great

After 65 years of making superior sportswear, it’s safe to say that PUMA know what they are doing when it comes to performancewear. As one of the world’s leading sports brands, PUMA has joined forces with the equally powerful fashion label, McQ by Alexander McQueen. The design house, headed by Creative Director Sarah Burton who took over following founder McQueen’s tragic passing, will now bring the label’s unmistakable gothic signature to PUMA’s contemporary athletic styles.

With both brands believing in experimentation, their resulting collaboration pieces — all in PUMA’s traditional athletic shapes — possess a strong aesthetic and a slight rebellious attitude. (Would McQueen have it any other way?) Key designs from the capsule collection include the McQ Run Mid and the McQ Run Lo which are constructed from PUMA’s TPU-moulded premium mesh and nubuck that sits below the structured athletic shapes, giving a rib-cage effect. The traditional shoe is challenged by human anatomy – ribcages and tendons re-inspire silhouettes to create cage-like styling; morphing, marble-like prints grace PUMA’s iconic sporting shapes.

Sportier and stronger, yet with the same nonchalant ease and rebellious attitude, Sarah Burton’s vision for the PUMA x McQ collaboration draws on Alexander McQueen’s rich fashion archive and merges it with PUMA’s fabled history of athletic innovation.

Words: Steph King