The terrace’s loss is our gain. Jones is one of the most in-demand designers on the planet, having raised a flag for casual dressing back when “athleisure” was a infinitesimal arrow on a luxury executive’s strategy flowchart. His unique blend of pin-sharp tailoring and exotic-looking sportswear brought him seven years of unprecedented success at Louis Vuitton. This year, he takes on Dior Homme, with a debut show in June. But not before he releases another Nike collaboration – and, just in time for the World Cup, this one has a football skew.
“For me, it was really looking at a very specific thing, which is football, and looking at the idea of the kit, but with a modern approach,” Jones tells Vogue. “The concept explores deconstruction, the idea of ‘make do and mend’, almost like cutting everything up and putting it back together – but putting it back together in a very technical way. It’s kind of punk through that ‘DIY’ attitude but executed at a really high level of sportswear technology.”
The spirit of Seventies Punk explains the raw seams, uneven necklines and roughed up ribbed panels that mix with all-out athleticism and that ubiquitous tick. Jones favourite pieces, though, are the shoes, a hi-top Air Max shape with asymmetric laces and a bubble sole that look vaguely futuristic. “Doing sneakers for Nike is always a joy,” says the 38-year-old designer, who owns around 600 pairs, having hassled his parents for a pair of Nikes when he was 12.
He favours white pairs, and at the moment is barely out of Prestos from the Off-White collaboration. “I have to say, Virgil [Abloh]’s doing a great job on all the styles he’s working on,” he says, of his Louis Vuitton predecessor. “I love what he does and I wear his shoes all the time – they’re just so cool and look fresh. And obviously the Jordan 1 is one of my favourites.”
He favours white pairs, and at the moment is barely out of Prestos from the Off-White collaboration. “I have to say, Virgil [Abloh]’s doing a great job on all the styles he’s working on,” he says, of his Louis Vuitton predecessor. “I love what he does and I wear his shoes all the time – they’re just so cool and look fresh. And obviously the Jordan 1 is one of my favourites.”
Designing sportswear hasn’t shifted his view of luxury fashion. “I just look at it as the brand. Then what the brief is and what the brand DNA is,” he says. “I’m kind of practical in that way. I like working with different seasons, figuring out what they should be in my head. Obviously, I’ve been to the campus in Portland which is kind of a Nike lab, it’s amazing. For me it’s been very organic because the people I work with, I’ve known for a long time.”
As for his World Cup predictions? “I don’t know yet,” he confesses. “I haven’t been looking enough because I’ve been too busy in fittings. I am hoping to actually go and see a game in Russia, just working out timings is quite difficult.” He’s referring, of course, to Dior-related matters – another kind of kit. “I’m in a bubble at the moment,” he admits. In it, but not on it: with Jones, there's only ever one outcome and it's a smash hit.
The Kim Jones x Nike Air Max 360 Hi 5-piece collection ranges from £190-£400 and is available on Nike.com from June 7th.
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