Brendan Dunne 
The stateside profile of Asics’ various retro silhouettes has been on a steady rise for a number of years now. While their classic Gel cushioned runners definitely built the foundation for this, it’s no secret that the various collab partners who have chipped in with their special edition designs helped build up the brand’s lifestyle efforts. Quite a few of those pairs remain relatively obscure today though, seeing as how the era of their debut was a pretty different one for footwear enthusiasts. On top of that, the collaborators have historically skewed non-American, so the distribution of these sort of pairs was usually a bit harsh for Yankees. But it’s a new day for Asics in the US; more and more shops have them around and more and more of us are checking for them.
Of course you can’t mention the rise of Asics’ profile without mentioning Ronnie Fieg, who graduated from buyer at David Z to a full blown shop owner through his KITH venture, and has been a nonstop collaborator with Asics throughout. His creations over the years have acquainted plenty more American sneakerheads with the brand, and have no doubt helped their retail visibility thanks to the hype trickle down. But we want to go beyond those and touch on some of the Asics team ups from over the years that you may have forgotten. Hence this latest Sneaker News NINE@NINE compilation. The group leans towards the Gel Lyte III – but there’s no question that that’s the most frequently selected and widely beloved when it comes to Asics SMUs, so it’s only fitting to give it its proper due. Continue reading to see the Sneaker News NINE@NINE featuring Asics collabs and let us know in the comments if you’ve got a favorite of your own that wasn’t included.
ALIFE Rivington Club x Asics Gel Lyte III – 2008
ALIFE whipped up two Asics Gel Lyte III pairs back in 2008 that featured subtle nods to some Nike classics. There was a grey based “Pigeon” that referenced LES neighbor Jeff Staple and then this “Curry” that borrowed its look from an inline Air Max 1. Good luck grabbing either though – there are said to be just 216 of each.
Patta x Asics Gel Lyte III – 2007
Patta has done plenty of work on a wide variety of Asics silhouettes. First up was this Asics Gel Lyte III pair, which went with the Flag of Amsterdam look with some X’d out lining and a familiar set of colors for Netherlands natives. They would later revisit the theme on a pair of the Gel Saga whose colors were a bit more subdued.
24 Kilates x Las Tres ZZZ x Asics Gel Lyte Speed – 2010
Sneakers that come packaged with a bottle of wine? This pair of Gel Speeds from Barcelona based sneaker spot 24 Kilates and the craftsmen at Las Tres ZZZ featured just that, along with a wooden box and a drinking jug to sip from while rocking your pair at the San Fermin festival that inspired them. Just hope they’re Speedy enough to help you outrun a bull.
Sneaker Freaker x Asics Gel Lyte III “Alvin Purple” – 2010
Depending on who you ask, “Alvin Purple” is either a riotous and raunchy Australian comedy, a slept on Asics team up, or both. The Aussies at Sneaker Freaker kept it down under with this pair by referencing a piece of work that likely flew over the heads of plenty of those who chased them down. Not that they needed a back story to be successful – the purple pair was plenty hard on its own.
Slam Jam x Asics Gel Lyte III “5th Dimension” – 2010
Another collab that came with some pretty impressive packaging. The Slam Jam x Asics Gel Lyte III “5th Dimension” had a graphic bag and some vinyl with it that held the same recordings from the trippy promo video that introduced the shoes. The sneakers featured a unique gradient fade for the tooling and some jumbo branding there as well.
Ronnie Fieg x Asics Gel Saga “Neptune” – 2012
You know all about Ronnie Fieg’s Asics output. And you know that he’s put in most work when it comes to the Asics Gel Lyte III, but let’s not forget what a good job he’s done familiarizing the general public with the brand’s other retro offerings. Case in point is the Asics Gel Saga “Neptune”, a pair that stuck out in a 2012 that was otherwise pretty packed with strong releases for this model.
Solebox x Asics Gel Lyte III – 2008
Solebox snapped with this one by introducing a UV sensitive treatment to the side stripes, which had them shifting colors in different light. If you got a pair straight from Solebox then they had the big branding across the heel – otherwise you’d find the standard GLIII script there. What ever happened to the sequels though?
SneakersNStuff x Asics GT-II “Seventh Seal” – 2012
SneakersNStuff went pretty high concept on this one, with a black and white colorway that referenced Ingmar Bergman’s seminal work The Seventh Seal. Other references included the chessboard lining and that piece that stands up in the heel area. Unfortunately, production issues relating to the color of that chess piece kept them out of the hands of many.
Zillion x Asics Gel Lyte III – 2011
Was there ever a cleaner Asics collab? Zillion gave Asics’ strongest silo some Japanese Chirimen fabric and a kimono look, one that came packaged in a deluxe wooden box. They also managed to sneak a Zillion logo onto the backside of the shoes – something that you don’t see too often in the modern era of Asics team ups.
