Bottega Vans-neta: In Beautifully Woven Leather, Skate Shoes Go Quiet Luxury
Vans and Bottega Veneta have never collaborated on sneakers. And yet, both brands have created shoes that dance around each other's signature codes in a way that every good collaboration should.
First came Bottega Veneta’s Sawyer sneaker, essentially a flattened Vans skate shoe in disguise. A luxurious, woven leather disguise.
Released last year, BV's Sawyer shoe shares the same low-profile shape as the Vans Authentic. You know, that quintessentially Californian skate shoe with the curved front panel. And, should you doubt that Bottega would ever look to the Vans for inspiration, the Bottega Veneta Sawyer even comes in a slip-on variation that comes awful close to the design of Vans’ classic Slip-On model. Coincidence? Well, maybe. Or, maybe not.
Now, for Spring/Summer 2025, Vans is returning the favor, creating its own woven leather Bottega-flavored collection of skate sneakers. They ain't Intrecciato but they will shred.
Shared to Instagram by Greg Betty, senior footwear designer at Vans, the woven leather Vans shoes — which include its Old Skool, Slip On, and Authentic models — all wear a woven leather upper that recalls Bottega Veneta’s Intrecciato weave (the same technique used on the upper of Bottega’s own “Vans” sneaker).
Part of the Vans Premium line, these shoes are indeed luxe. However, the difference between Vans' woven sneakers and Bottega’s slick shoe actually isn't all that stark.
Beyond a few key differences — the Vans’ shoes are chunkier and their craftsmanship naturally doesn't match up to that of Bottega, a luxury label that specializes in leather craft — but at their core, they’re a similar idea presented in different ways: Woven leather iterations of classic skate shoes.
And if you’re getting a sense of Déjà vu, it’s likely because a near-identical story recently played out with Bottega Veneta and Timberland: Bottega made a woven leather boot seemingly inspired by a pair of Timbs, then Timberland made a woven leather boot seemingly inspired by Bottega Veneta.
Twice, in the same month, two brands have riffed on Bottega’s signature leather weave in what looks like a response to Bottega riffing on their most iconic designs — it’s a strange state of affairs, albeit a subtle way for disparate brands to tip their hat to each other, assuming that's even what they're doing.
