THE B27: BEST FOOT FORWARD

As modelled by friend of the house Robert Pattinson, Dior Men’s new sneakers epitomise the house’s heritage of innovation – and make the perfect foundation for its progressive reinvention of modern tailoring.

It’s all about initiating small changes for a greater overall effect. Kim Jones of Dior Men has unleashed the B27 sneakers, a new fashion statement and a luxury expression of the democratic sportswear aura he has long spearheaded. One of the first men fortunate enough to wear them was on-screen star, in-house partner and brand ambassador Robert Pattinson, for whom the B27s provided a powerful footwear foundation to Dior Men’s loosely silhouetted Spring/Summer 2021 collection. Pattinson’s collaboration with the luxury fashion house began when he became the face of the Dior Homme fragrance in 2012, and it is a partnership that has blossomed ever since. Pattinson most recently fronted the Jones-designed Modern Tailoring capsule, and gave those fresh B27s a run-out too. The shoes looked as fierce and fresh as the man wearing them. Cleverly mixing the brand’s signature sleek lines with retro influences from 1980s tennis shoes (which also led the charge in the skateboarding universe), the B27 sneakers range offers painstakingly pristine low- and hightop models. The two-toned designs represent a discriminating and timeless tribute to the maison’s illustrious heritage. Headline motifs in this very modern, made-in-Italy expression of Dior’s pedigree of design excellence include embellishments with multi-material finishing that blend smooth calf leather and nubuck with the Dior Oblique jacquard or the Dior Oblique Galaxy – in perforated leather – designed for the Spring 2021 men’s collection. Unique details include eyelets shaped after the classic “CD” logo and fabrication techniques that forward the house’s reputation for innovation. The B27s elevate Dior’s creative refinement and channel its leatherworking tradition, from edge dyeing to topstitching, with each step of the manufacturing process reflecting the exceptional savoir faire perpetuated by the artisans in the house’s Italian leather workshops. The result of a sophisticated assemblage, the shoes’ inlays are combined and layered to create a unique, three-dimensional effect. The result is a design that combines both impact and depth – two qualities personified by Pattinson.