Aaron Hope 
In order to survive in today’s heavily populated lifestyle sneaker market, you’ve got to have a keen eye for what’s going on in the sneakerhead scene. Not only do you need standout designs to make a name, but having the self-awareness to adjust your strategy to make things work is a key skill we’ve seen separate the contenders from the has-beens. Amsterdam’s Filling Pieces has that kind of laser focus, its very name implying the middle ground designer Guillaume Philibert found between haute couture and street-level luxury. His spring 2012 collection can be seen as heavily influenced by Vans’ own pioneering moves to make skate aesthetics a casual standard, designs ranging from vulc-soled wingtips to chukka-derived sneakers and a standout black horsehair lowtop you’ll see in greater detail below. Let us know which of these designs most appeals to your tastes and find them at Kith in New York.
