Rebuilding classic shoes into brand-new silhouettes: Birkenstock x sacai’s first official collaboration

Key takeaways

• Birkenstock and sacai’s first official collaboration debuted at sacai’s Spring/Summer 2027 menswear show.
• The collection comes in two colorways, taupe and black, while retaining the signature cork-latex footbed and leather-wrapped construction.
• Tattoo artist Dr. Woo contributed graphic designs for select styles, adding his signature fine-line motifs.
• sacai founder Chitose Abe applies her signature Hybrid design approach, deconstructing and recombining three of Birkenstock’s classic styles to create two new silhouettes.

Birkenstock and sacai have launched their first collaboration. Rather than simply adding logos to the shoes, sacai founder Chitose Abe deconstructed the brand’s most iconic styles and recombined them into two new silhouettes, once again showcasing the Hybrid design philosophy she’s known for.

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Deconstructing and recombining three classic styles

Images from ig / @birkenstock @sacaiofficial

The collection first appeared at sacai’s Spring/Summer 2027 menswear show. Based on three of Birkenstock’s most iconic styles – the Madrid, Arizona, and Boston – it deconstructs the straps, buckles, and upper construction, then recombines them into two new designs, continuing Chitose Abe’s signature Hybrid approach.

Two new styles: Aoyama 107 and Cassette 75

Images from ig / @birkenstock @sacaiofficial

Aoyama 107 combines the Madrid’s single-strap design, introduced in 1963, with Arizona’s classic double straps and square buckles. Its name comes from sacai’s flagship store in Tokyo’s Aoyama district. The other style, Cassette 75, combines the Arizona with the Boston clog, which marks its 50th anniversary this year. Its name comes from Rue Cassette, home to sacai’s Paris headquarters, making the shoes themselves part of the brand’s story.

Retaining BIRKENSTOCK’s most iconic comfort features

Images from ig / @birkenstock @sacaiofficial

Though the silhouettes have been redesigned, the collection retains Birkenstock’s signature cork-latex footbed and leather-wrapped construction, continuing the supportive comfort rooted in the brand’s orthopedic footwear. The collection comes in taupe and black, with understated colors highlighting the designs of the shoes themselves.

Alongside Chitose Abe’s designs, American tattoo artist Dr. Woo also joined the collaboration, reinterpreting details on select styles with his signature fine-line motifs. This isn’t BIRKENSTOCK and sacai’s first collaboration: the two released platform sandals with multiple straps back in the 2010s. Chitose Abe has also maintained the same principle for every collaboration: “I don’t design anything I wouldn’t wear myself.” That statement has become the clearest expression of her design approach in every collaboration.

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