Clark Wallabees

Released in 1968, the Clark Wallabee became the shoe of choice for the era's revolutionaries, free thinkers, and counter culture thinkers. Upon it's release, it made a big impression and was immediately embraced by some of reggae's most influential artists. Since then, the shoe has been worn by the likes the Wu-tang Clang, Pharrell, Justin Beiber, and Brad Pitt. Clarks has a long standing history of collaborating with a variety of different brands and creating products that push the envelope and generate hype. Recent collaborations have included partnerships with fashion brands such as BAPE, KITH, Supreme, OVO, and much more. Clarks also has done music-based collaborations with their Wu-Tang inspired Wallabee shoe.

The Ask 
Create an unexpected collaboration for Clarks' Wallabees.                                           
The Challenge 
The majority of Clarks releases have been collaborations with fashion, art, or streetwear brands. Our Goal: release a product that heightens brand visibility and recognition for Clarks' Wallabees.
The Insight
"The Wallabees are a staple among those "set-apart" by society. These shoes are made for innovators, by  innovators. To some, the shoes offer more than just a sole. It allows them to express themselves and make a statement. When it comes to collaborations, Clarks has primarily stayed in the lane of culture: fashion, music,  or artistry. But there hasn't yet been a release in the social and political space that truly pushes the envelope.
The Strategy
Create a socially conscious shoe that makes statement. A large part of this strategy was being able to create a space that was missing in Wallabee shoe releases; ones that address social and political issues. One of the underlying issues the country faces today is Oppression, which we see play out through inequality, racism, and discrimination. All of these factors have played their part in the plight of many black Americans today. This new Clarks release seeks to combat all of these elements through black empowerment and positivity. The plan is to collaborate with an artist who can best represent the black community by being able speak to those social issues.
The IDEA
This product design will feature the Classic Black Suede Wallabee boot. The release is set in 2020. The overall theme of this shoe is "Black Excellence." It will be commemorating Kendrick Lamar's 5th anniversary of  "To Pimp a Butterfly." The themes covered in TPAB include oppression, racism, institutionalization, black uplifting, and much more. This release focused on black excellence, in the wake of not only the BLM protest in 2020, but also the need for black images of positivity. The shoe will feature social and political figures such as Kendrick Lamar, Colin Powell, MLK, and many other current figures. The name will be on the box as well as in the shoe and show a sub-theme such as "Strength" along with a symbol, quote, or words written on the heel of the shoe. The promotion of the shoe will be done through social media and through online press publications.

Kdot x Wallabees Shoe Card and words from Kendrick. Every shoe box card has different words from that featured person.

Black Excellence Shoe Box with TPAB symbolism, but instead of just black and white, we added subtle sunlight to show the beauty in our own black excellence the struggle, the journey and the outcome.

We added Kdots birthday as the year Black Excellence was born. Other figures that have exhibited Black Excellence will have their birth year towards the upper heel cap. The butterfly symbol was added below the upper heel cap.

Side View of the Black excellence shoe (Left) . The word "BLACK" is carefully stitched on the upper and vamp sections of the shoe.
Top view of the Kdot Wallabees. The insole is stitched with Kendrick Lamars signature. The word "EXCELLENCE" is stitched in as well to subtly stand out while still being engrained in the fabric.