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The highs and lows of an It-shoe: how Adidas Sambas took over the world


Rishi Sunak may have rendered them uncool this week, but the trainer has risen to ubiquity in the past few years. So what is it about this fairly simple design that is so widely loved?

The humble Adidas Samba, once the reserve of football fans, Britpop kids and the odd skateboarder, has become as ubiquitous as battered Converse All Stars in the 00s indie sleaze years. Last week, even the Conservative prime minister, Rishi Sunak, was seen in Adidas Sambas – a move that many have hailed as the final nail in the coffin for the popular trainer. But, for a lot of young people, it was the brand’s 2020 collaboration with menswear designer Grace Wales Bonner – trainers that are now going for up to £4,000 on some sites – that really elevated the Samba to stratospheric levels.

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