That day when… I said goodbye to sneakers

It was the story of one evening that changed me. One cold Saturday in November 2018, a friend I met through social media invited me to a birthday party in a chic neighborhood of Paris, a stone’s throw from the Olympia. I arrive in sneakers, far from suspecting the mistake I am about to make. Under the moldings of an apartment nestled on the 4th floor of a Haussmann building, I meet around ten people. The girls are all in Chanel, faux fur coats and luxury pumps, while the boys give the impression of having agreed on the same theme: flowing leopard blouse with pussy-bow collar, black pants with pleats and ankle boots of the same shade. Most are dressed in Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello, or are simply inspired by the spirit of the French label’s men’s collections.

I feel like Géraldine Nakache’s character in All that glittersthat is to say totally and especially socially out of step with the people around me. They all work in fashion and are fascinated by the figure of the late Jacques de Bascher, former Paris dandy, lover of Yves Saint Laurent and great love of Karl Lagerfeld. “A man of taste,” someone whispers in my ear. I just learned of its existence.

Night at Maxim’s

Apart from a few questioning looks, that evening, no one paid too much attention to my sneakers, even though I was the only one wearing them, and the only one who gave the impression of not having made any effort. It’s an indescribable feeling that settles inside me. By observing these people who I find so well dressed, I want to be like them. I realize that leather ankle boots, which I long thought were reserved for women (and for Nicolas Sarkozy), have the power to completely reshape a man’s silhouette. To give it more allure and presence. They make me think of the 1970s, and tell me that style and fashion trends are two separate things.

After spending the night at Maxim’s, where I felt more ridiculous than ever with my Stan Smiths on my feet, I decided to change everything. The sneakers will only be useful to me on a “lazy” day. During the week, however, it’s time for dressier shoes.

The art of getting tired

However, I think I’m in the game, at this time when sneakers are breaking all records. Virgil Abloh then imposed his streetwear style, becoming the new artistic director of Louis Vuitton’s men’s line, and elevated sneakers to the rank of fashion objects.

I then alternate between different models: red Converse, a pair of Adidas Stan Smiths and Asics Gel-Quantums with their ultra-comfortable notched soles. Sneakers have never been a thing for me. In short, everyone wears them from morning to evening, and that’s how it is. Even more so between 2018 and 2019, years marked by the re-emergence of 1980s fashion. Until this famous evening that I still call “the Bascher experience”. Suddenly, I’m saturated with this sneaker phenomenon which, despite the creative genius of Virgil Abloh, still fails to make me want to get my hands on other versions that are cooler and more in tune with the times.

The power of the boot

Little by little, black ankle boots are joining my wardrobe. Much more elegant, they have offered me endless possibilities for outfits for years. These too long pants for example, which I can’t wear with flat shoes at the risk of letting them drag on the ground, fit perfectly with a pair of ankle boots. This embroidered wool sweater, very casual with jeans and sneakers, reveals all its potential when combined with beige buckled moccasins and chocolate wool pants.

If, like everyone else, I gave in, during confinement, to comfortable clothes and UGG-type city slippers, now ankle boots are part of my uniform. I’m not the only one. Roméo Beckham posed in stiletto heels in a Saint Laurent campaign in 2022, while Jules Koundé, football star, arrived at the Clairefontaine center in a tie, leather jacket and heeled cowboy boots last May. Today, even football icons, who for many represent figures of virility and strength, are growing tired of sneakers. And discover, as I did at a party, that style goes way beyond a rubber sole.