MILAN — Scholl is adding a velvety touch to its signature design, courtesy of ViBi Venezia.
In the latest installment of its collaboration strategy, the brand has joined forces with the niche Italian footwear label, which is best known for furlane, the traditional Venetian slippers that sisters Vera and Viola Arrivabene have helped gain international recognition since launching their brand in 2014.
This time the Arrivabenes were challenged to take their creative approach to a new height — quite literally — as they were called on to reinterpret the Pescura style, Scholl’s distinctive clogs dating back to 1956 that became fashionable in the ’60s when French actresses wore them on vacation in the French Riviera.
The Pescura Lola style from the Scholl x ViBi Venezia collaboration.
Courtesy of ViBi Venezia
The new capsule collection instead offers a winter-y take, since the silhouette was revisited with a velvet upper and matching grosgrain details nodding to the classic Venetian slippers. The line includes two iterations: the ruby-hued Pescura Bibi clog with a 2.75-inch matching sole and the navy Pescura Lola alternative, standing on a 3.5-inch beechwood sole and featuring a back strap sealed by a Scholl buckle.
Retailing at 230 euros, the styles will be available starting Wednesday on both brands’ websites, in addition to the ViBi Venezia flagship in Milan’s Brera district. On the same day, a dinner at the city’s historic Bice restaurant will celebrate the launch, which includes a dedicated campaign photographed in Venice.
The Pescura Bibi style from the Scholl x ViBi Venezia collaboration.
Courtesy of ViBi Venezia
The Scholl x ViBi Venezia collaboration follows in the footsteps of the one with Melissa revealed earlier this month and reinterpreting both the Pescura design and Melissa’s Possession jelly sandals. It adds to Scholl’s long list of tie-ups, such as with brands Khrisjoy, Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini, Y’s by Yohji Yamamoto, Ganni, Eres, Honey Dijon, Issimo and Re/Done, among others.
ViBi Venezia has also made collaborations a focal point of its business model. Over the summer the Arrivabenes joined forces with the New York-based brand Hill House Home to inject a floral spin into their slippers. Previously, they teamed with the likes of Markarian, Emilia Wickstead, Saloni and Luisa Beccaria, as well as retailers including Liberty of London, Net-a-porter and LuisaViaRoma for special editions.
The Pescura Lola style from the Scholl x ViBi Venezia collaboration.
Courtesy of ViBi Venezia
These partnerships further helped the sisters catapult a low-key, local footwear style into a global one. Dating back to the 19th century, the furlane slippers were originally produced from leftover fabrics and old tires, becoming a success among gondoliers as the rubber sole allowed them to have a firm grip while rowing without scratching the surface of gondolas.
Wearing the style since childhood, the Arrivabenes were regularly asked by their friends abroad to bring them pairs whenever they met them, so they sensed the demand for the design could be bigger. Over the past decade they have increasingly expanded the offering, showing variations of the style by reworking them in roughly 100 different materials — from velvet and lightweight canvas to silk and damask fabrics — as well as experimenting with sportier takes in slip-ons with thicker rubber soles, feminine wedges and platforms and launching a kid’s line.
