When he was younger, Opening Ceremony co-founder Humberto Leon had some low-grade juvenile delinquent tendencies. "I remember growing up, when I was in third or fourth grade, my sister was really, really into Vans; she had 70 pairs," he says. "I was a jealous third grader. At one point, my sister and I sort of crossed over in size, so I could steal her Vans."
These days, though, Leon has nothing but respect and admiration for the women wearing Vans. In fact, even though the California sneaker brand can count a lot of famous men among their fans—Kanye, Bieber, Rocky, and Damn Daniel, to name just a few—Leon says the most important celebrity devotee is actually actress and hipster icon Chloë Sevigny.
“Chloë Sevigny is probably one of the most classic,” Leon tells Complex. “She’ll wear Vans, and it’ll look classic on her. It doesn’t look like she’s trying too hard. It just looks like it fits her perfectly.”
Like Sevigny, Leon is something of a Vans expert, and not just because of his personal history with the brand. Since he founded OC in 2002 with his business partner Carol Lim, the shop has has become synonymous with fashion collaborations, partnering with everyone from Uniqlo to Lacoste, Levi’s to Dr. Martens. But one of their most frequent collaborators through it all has been Vans. And to prove their love is real, OC and Vans are moving in together; this past week, OC unveiled a brand new Vans shop-in-shop on the top floor of the retailer's Howard Street location in New York. Called Club USA, the space was created with industrial designer Max Lamb and will feature a selection of Vans product, OC x Vans collabs, and other related merch.
"We’ve worked on these kinds of Vans projects for going on about five years, but it's super exciting to see a home where they can all be together," Leon says. "It's a great opportunity for us to showcase how we’re working with the brand differently than anyone else would."
Leon believes that Vans' equal appeal to people like his third-grade self, Kanye, and Sevigny is part of what sets the brand apart from other sneakers that have been around just as long, or longer. "You can get the same aesthetic in both men’s and women's, which is nice and consistent," he notes. "I think that’s one of the strongest parts of their brand—that their women’s products are as strong as their men’s."
If you're somehow not fully convinced of Vans' mass appeal, consider this: Opening Ceremony's Qi Pao Pack—a selection of men's and women's Vans inspired by traditional Chinese silk that was released as part of the Club USA launch—has already completely sold out online. You'll need to keep a close watch on the space for the next limited edition sneakers, which tend to drop every few months. While you wait for that, though, you can still cop Vans Authentic and Old Skool styles at Club USA, too—and priced at around $50, they're quite a steal.
