After many starts and stops through the years, LA Gear is at it again.
The Los Angeles-inspired fashion and footwear brand is set to relaunch on Nov. 18 with a new visual identity, website and reimagined sneaker styles by newly appointed creative director Dave Osokow.
For the first launch, Osokow, who is the co-founder of eyewear company Privé Revaux, will debut the Boardwalk lifestyle sneaker. Inspired by LA Gear’s archival Unstoppable Collection, the unisex style is crafted with a leather upper, terry cloth liner and a 10 to 12-hour rechargeable LED tongue.
“The contemporary look of the Boardwalk is a nod to the old-school classics we love from the ‘90s,” Osokow said in a statement. “A modern nostalgic feel to your everyday style.”
Jay Jackson, EVP of LA Gear parent ACI International as well as LA Gear’s brand manager, said the company, which debuted as a women’s boutique in the early 1980s and generated global buzz with its unique light-up sneaker styles, is “excited” to bring the designer aboard.
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“His entrepreneurial spirit and creative style, align with our long-term vision and commitment to design and produce quality products that reflect our heritage, current footwear, and style trends, and expand our visibility,” Jackson said in a statement.
To launch the style, LA Gear is teaming up with Los Angeles-based specialty store Fred Segal, which will offer the new Boardwalk silhouette at its Sunset Blvd. flagship store as well as online.
“Fred Segal shifted the style-culture of Los Angeles – a retail partnership celebrates the legacies of LA Gear, the history of our city and the authenticity of an inclusive lifestyle,” Jackson added. “We look forward to the future and creating unique collections and experiences.”
The Boardwalk will retail at $100 and join LA Gear’s heritage footwear collection: Catapult, Flame, and Turbo.
In spring 2023, LA Gear will widen its distribution to Aerie stores both offline and online, followed by a few strategic independent retail partners. In fall 2023, LA Gear plans to expand into Nordstrom and Journeys Kidz.
The Los Angeles-based company has taken several other stabs at relaunching over the years.
In Jan. 2021 under the direction of artist and footwear designer Alexander-John. The designer — whose resumé includes collaborations with New Balance, Puma and Reebok — launched his first-ever women’s-only capsule collection for the brand, which allowed him to pay homage to Black women at a critical time in American culture.
In 2015, the brand, founded by Robert Greenberg in 1983 and acquired by ACI International in the early 2000s, tapped rap star Tyga as a brand ambassador and creative adviser to relaunch in a “whole new way.”
