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Lookbook Spring/ Summer 2014
Foreword
The 5 rules to a classic design
The 5 rules to a classic design
Simplicity The Subway contains every detail it needs, but limits itself to the essentials.
Reinvention The soles of the Subway were originally inspired by 70s style tennis soles, but reinvented to fit modern times.
A central characteristic of HUB Footwear’s designs is the iconic orange Z-stitch. Originally it was placed on the sneakers as a physical connection to strengthen the seams, but nowadays the Z-stitch evolved into a metaphorical connection to challenge people who wear HUB Footwear to connect with the world around them. As a brand, we like to take our own path. We feel that life is about the surprising moments, not about going by the book. It’s when you step out of your daily routine, the most original ideas are born.
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HUB Footwear started in 1994, creating shoes that we like to call ‘sophisticated sneakers’.We are inspired by city life, which is not surprising looking at our brand name.The definition of a ‘hub’ is “a place where people meet, or activities flow”.This is exactly what we would like to be.Another great influence for our brand is the passion we have for style and tennis, which isn’t surprising either, since two of our founders are former professional tennis players.
It’s this thought that is the base of our brand’s motto ‘Challenge The Obvious’. One of the things that we love the most are the people who look at their city, or city life in general, from a different perspective, which shows us the city in a way we’ve never seen before.
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In 2012 we started making films about these individuals, to document their unique projects and activities. Making these documentaries is our way of celebrating these great minds and their original perspective of looking at the city. They truly inspire us to continue doing what we love so much: making shoes!
Character The Subway’s character, its nose (inspired by a dolphin’s nose and the classic design of the Citroën DS), deepens with wear and will age with style.
Adaptability The fit of the Subway is highly adaptable. It evolves each season, without losing its essence.
Timelessness The Subway contains a timeless cut that suits anyone, anytime.
Lookbook Spring/Summer 2014
www.hubfootwear.com
HUB Footwear
Looking at the city from a different perspective
HUB Footwear
Looking at the city from a different perspective
What truly inspired us is the spontaneity and creativity of city life. We love it when an individual or a group of people look at these things from a different perspective, and show us something that might have always been there, but wasn’t evident. In 2012 we decided to break with the traditional means of advertising, and make documentaries instead. Inspiring videos about beautiful individuals who “challenge the obvious” every single day. The first two documentaries featured Haas & Hahn, who use art in their quest to change people’s lives in the socioeconomically troubled neighborhoods of Rio de Janeiro and Philadelphia. Their “Favela Painting” and “Philly Painting” projects inspired us to make ‘A Day in the Life of Haas & Hahn’,‘This is not the End’, and a limited edition HUB Footwear x Philly Painting sneaker.
In the beginning of 2013 we came across a very different story. There’s a new generation of young Russian photographers with a unique and unexpected way of looking at a city. They climb up to terrifying heights, to capture the city from places people would normally avoid. There’s a whole bunch of people doing this for the thrill of it, but there’s only a few who really pay attention to the aesthetics of the photos they are taking. So, when we came across photographers Vadim Mahorov and Vitaliy Yakhnenko, we instantly knew we wanted to collaborate with them.
5 We called a friend who spoke Russian and asked him to invite the guys to Berlin for a roofing adventure in Germany. This project resulted in a friendship and the thrilling documentary ‘Roofers Point of View’. Hungry to get to know them better, we decided to visit them in Moscow and Siberia to find out more about their background and roofing experiences in Russia. All documentaries can be found on our website, hubfootwear.com. www.hubfootwear.com
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It has been almost 10 years since we started HUB Footwear. In the beginning, my longtime friend and former professional tennis player Tim Rompa and I would have numerous discussions about how we didn’t like the vintage hype at the time, everyone flirting with the concept of the past.We wanted to live in the now, and decided to set up our own footwear brand. Inspired by street culture, tennis and the ever-changing nature of city life, we began an adventure that may have been naïve at the start, but has lasted ever since.
Lookbook Spring/Summer 2014
HUB Footwear
Interview: Marije de Haan
Interview: Marije de Haan Why did you specifically approach HUB Footwear? I’m from The Hague, just like HUB Footwear. I knew we would understand each other. People from The Hague are really down to earth and laidback. We don’t complain or whine, we just roll up our sleeves and go for it. And we joke around a lot. This goes for the shoes as well: they have that same no bullshit approach.
What’s your current role at HUB Footwear? Huub [Van Boeckel, founder of HUB] calls me a breath of fresh air. Sometimes I come up with crazy ideas that scare him, but after a while he always comes up to me and says: yeah, you actually had a point. Also, I make him come up with ideas he normally would never have thought of. Tell us about your summer plans. I’m going to Burning Man Festival in the desert of Nevada! It’s a dream come true. Burning Man is the festival of festivals, the type of thing I’m going to tell my grandchildren about when I’m old. Everyone there is building something: a sculpture, a vehicle, a building, anything. It’s an incredibly creative place. It’s a ‘hub’, actually: a place where people and ideas meet. My boyfriend and I came up with the idea to design a special Burning Man collection for HUB Footwear.
First of all, how did this collaboration come about? I first contacted HUB Footwear when I was looking for a sponsor to help me out with my show at Amsterdam Fashion Week. They gave me shoes, and in return I designed a small range of limited edition shoes for HUB Footwear, with my illustrations on the inside.
photography by Peter Stigter
Lookbook Spring/Summer 2014
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www.hubfootwear.com
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Marije de Haan (27) graduated from the fashion department of the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague with a rather morbid menswear collection inspired by crime scene photos from the early19th century.It was an instant hit: she won‘Lichting 2010’ (which means she was the very best fashion alumnus in The Netherlands that year) and a grant of 20.000 euro from the city of The Hague.This spring she joined HUB Footwear to focus on their women’s line.We thought it was time to do a little interview.
HUB Footwear
Interview: Marije de Haan
How did you actually start out as a fashion designer? I always knew I wanted to be a fashion designer. One of my oldest friends recently showed me an old friendship booklet in which I had written that I was going to be a fashion designer. I was only seven years old at the time. I have no clue where the idea came from. So what will your HUB Footwear x MDH shoe look like? HUB Footwear asked me to design a women’s shoe, which was a first time for me because I usually do menswear. I translated my menswear design from the Fall / Winter 2013 collection into a somewhat more feminine design. To add a touch of winter I decided to work with black and white only. I used perforated suede and a black leather nose. Eventually the design worked out so well, Huub decided that the shoe should also be produced for the men’s line! We’re going to do a fashion shoot at Burning Man, for which we will use the festival’s visitors as the models. My boyfriend will be there as well; he’s already growing a beard so he’ll look awesome in the pictures!
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You work at HUB Footwear three days a week and beside that, you run your own line. What do you do to relax? This is going to sound extremely cheesy, but I love taking long walks on the beach. I have a dog and The Hague is really close to the beach, so I go there a lot to clear my mind.
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www.hubfootwear.com
Could you tell us something about the new HUB Footwear collection? Have you heard of Roofers? They’re photographers who climb on extremely high cranes, bridges or buildings, and photograph cities from above. Absolutely terrifying! We were inspired by them and came up with the idea to look up, instead of down. And what do you see when you look up while you’re walking through a big city? Clouds, sunsets, neon lights, etcetera. That led to some very special color combinations.
How would your friends describe you? I think my friends would say I have an extremely positive attitude. I’m always cheerful, I have a lot of energy and I love to party. You can see it in my designs: I don’t have any boundaries. I always come up with new plans and even if everyone tells me they’re impossible, I’ll go through with them anyway.
Lookbook Spring/Summer 2014
Our SS14 Collection throug the eyes of Kim Nuijen
HUB Footwear
Our SS14 Collection through the eyes of Kim Nuijen
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www.hubfootwear.com
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This season we’ve invited photographer Kim Nuijen to shoot our SS14 collection. As a photographer, Kim has always been fascinated by the way people spontaneously interact with each other when a camera is around. Kim placed the new collection of HUB Footwear on a flight of stairs.“HUB Footwear is urban, so I was looking for places in the city which people race past without noticing. For me, stairs symbolise the hustle and bustle of the city.”
Lookbook Spring/Summer 2014
Collection
HUB Footwear
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Women Panama
Seattle
Chucker
Industry
State
Harlem
Harlem High
Harlem High
Frisco
Kingston
Subway
Fuji
Brooklyn
Jersey
Kyoto
Woods
Lookbook Spring/Summer 2014
Stratton Pepper
Kyoto
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www.hubfootwear.com
Men
HUB Footwear
HUBstore Berlin — More hub, less store
HUBstore Berlin — More hub, less store Opening a brand’s first (own) store is a huge deal. But it’s an even bigger deal when you want it to be more than ‘just a store’. Before opening the first HUB Footwear store, we decided it had to transcend the standard sneaker shop. Staying true to our brand name, we dreamt of a physical ‘hub’, where young artists could meet and new ideas would come to life.
Setting up a shop in Berlin made perfect sense for us. Berlin is one of the most creative hubs in Europe, where people and activities from all over the world come together. In 2010 we opened our first store at the Münzstrasse in Mitte. In January 2013 we moved a couple of blocks, to a bigger space located at the Rochstrasse. For our upcoming ten-year anniversary, one wall of the store will be adorned with photos and items that tell HUB Footwear’s story. Memories that range from the tennis sole we used for our first shoe, to a framed picture of Boris Becker and our founder Huub van Boeckel. Germans will surely love that one!
Lookbook Spring/Summer 2014
Haas & Hahn were the first to exhibit in the basement, displaying photos of their “Philly Painting” project. We then handed over the space to Berlin-based British artist Alex Godwin, simply known as Billy. The first work she exhibited was for one of Berlin’s biggest design and art festivals Pictoplasma, where the HUBstore was an official venue for the ‘Character Walk’. Right after this festival she had another exhibition in the HUBstore basement called “Still Life”.
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So, to sum it all up: When you’re in Berlin, make sure to drop by the Rochstrasse to check out our store and creative space. HUB Footwear Store Rochstrasse 4 10178 Berlin Germany www.hubfootwear.com
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However, the store’s basement is where the real magic happens. This is where (upcoming) artists can manifest themselves; this is what makes our store a creative hub. Our basement can be used for exhibitions, but also as an atelier for artists. They can use the walls, the floors, pretty much everything. Just as long as they don’t burn down the whole building!
Watch the documentaries and view our full collection on hubfootwear.com