Ronnie Fieg on the Evil Genius of Kith's Marvel Villains Collabs (EXCLUSIVE)
Kith and Marvel have honored the good guys plenty of times: Now, it's the villains' turn. To celebrate Marvel's 85th anniversary, Kith founder Ronnie Fieg oversaw an expansive collection of clothes, accessories and home goods that distill the comic company's not-so-do-gooders into covetable collectibles.
"Marvel’s villains have such rich histories that it’s hard not to root for them as much as the heroes," Fieg told Highsnobiety.
"With this year’s collection, I sat with my team to ideate what section of Marvel felt untapped. As we discussed different characters and storylines, I noticed that I kept coming back to the villains."
Yes, a rogues' gallery of Marvel's worst rogues takes center stage in the Marvel x Kith 85th Anniversary Collection and, dare I say, these rude dudes are as stylish as they are despicable.
"The artwork for the villains has a distinctly different feeling from most of the heroes, which helped inform the most impactful way to apply them to different pieces," continued Fieg, a Marvel fan since the early '90s (his favorite character is Wolverine).
But, still, a capsule that honors some of Marvel's villains might feel like an odd fit for a moment as celebratory as the entertainment giant's 85th birthday. Like, isn't this an occasion to honor heroics, instead? Not really.
The bad guys are as intrinsic to Marvel lore as the Spider-Mans and Captain Americas and Fieg's approach is to highlight all aspects of Marvel's inimitable universe with equal zeal.
With the villain-focused approach, "It was clear we had found a space that had yet to be explored and that’s what we’re always looking to do – bring something to the consumer they haven’t seen anywhere else," says Paul Gitter, Executive Vice President, Marvel Licensing, Disney Consumer Products.
And this line is as much steeped in a deference to heritage as the prior hero-centric Kith x Marvel collabs. Really, there is no clearer unifying element of these team-ups.
"Nostalgia is an incredibly powerful emotion," Gitter explains. "It’s very organic. Ronnie grew up collecting Marvel trading cards and reading the comic books so that personal affinity grounds a lot of what we do together. Each collection we’ve dropped has had such an impact because we’ve leaned into that authenticity."
"Similar to Marvel’s storylines, we want to build a world with these collections," Fieg expounds. That means taking the bad (guys) with the good (guys). "Also, there are certain products that I know would be incredible based on a certain character or specific artwork, and sometimes those certain products are things best created by our partners."
Silver Surfer's surfboard, made real in partnership with Haydenshapes, is a crucial example.
This particular triple collaboration really made me think: There's something uniquely Kith about a three-way partnership.
Like, New Balances made in homage to Frank Lloyd Wright? Coca-Cola Kith Converse? Only Kith.
"I’m fortunate to have a strong relationship with many different brands because I don’t feel limited in what we’re able to create when ideating a collection," Fieg says.
Within this Marvel offering, for instance, there's an Infinity Gauntlet paperweight fitted with genuine Swarovski crystals, thematic Modernica chairs and ASICS running sneakers dressed in colors inspired by the likes of Mageneto and Venom (the latter is included in a two-pack with Spider-Man, the sole hero appearance here).
This is the Kith difference, where seemingly disparate partners are organically (and heroically) folded into the label's own universe, so expansive it's nearly as cinematic as Marvel's own.
And, yes, that extends to third Kith x Marvel comic book, where Fieg shares the pages with the Green Goblin
"My relationship with ASICS is amazing, and I’m grateful to be able to work so closely with their team," Fieg adds, pointing to 2023's X-Men collaboration as the locus of this specific sneaker-first crossover. "In other cases, like Swarovski, there are partners that can help bring a comic concept to life."
Kith's Marvel 85th anniversary collabs release on August 9 on Kith's website. There's so much more there, from wearables to collectibles but believe it or not, it's all merely a taste of what Gitter describes as "much more to come." Talk about a cliffhanger.
