#BigRedBoots cause a lot of MSCHF
Photo by MSCHF.
“IT’S A FOOTWEAR DESIGN TRUISM THAT THE SHAPE OF A SHOE IS NOT THE SHAPE OF A FOOT. BIG RED BOOTS ARE REALLY NOT SHAPED LIKE FEET, BUT THEY ARE EXTREMELY SHAPED LIKE BOOTS.”
-MSCHF, Creative Team Behind the “Big Red Boots”
They are big, red, and hard to style. Yet, they are still all over everyone’s FYP (“For You Page”). The creative collective MSCHF (pronounced as “Mischief”) was behind these viral, iconic boots. The trending article of clothing has drawn a lot of attention due to its “cartoon-esque” look along with their large size.
MSCHF is known for their past mischievous acts. Gabriel Whaley founded MSCHF in 2016, but previous was a Buzzfeed employee. Previously, the brand targeted Nike by creating a counterfeit shoe type. They released the large footwear on February 16 where they exclusively sold them on their site resulting in a sell-out. The brand is also known for recently releasing a giant Froot Loop with the box and all which many influencers and social media personalities are trying.
What materials make up these? According to MSCHF they are/have:
- Big
- Red
- TPU Rubber Shell
- EVA Out/Midsole
- Patent Pending
Vision
The product engages an aspect many do not understand, the “unreal”. The central theme around these is to relate to a cartoon character. MSCHF shared, “Cartoonishness is an abstraction that frees us from the constraints of reality.” Many interactions are being made with #BigRedBoots via social media. These big red object-like foot wear were inspired initially by Astro Boy.
Many brands are attempting to obtain a sense of realness and originality. For example, this is seen with the trending smartphone application BeReal. Yet, MSCHF achieved and mastered individuality through escaping the real world and embellishing the surreal, animated world. These prominent shoes follow the modern trend of minimalism, making them stand out so much.
The product itself is being sold for $350 and the company sold out within a short time. The genius behind these shoes is also the fact that they are an innocent, familiar shape. They are recognizable, but as if someone ripped them out of a children’s cartoon and put them into existence. Very cool.
There is a strong amount of symbolism behind the footwear. The brand reaches into your mind. “Hundreds of characters, from the mouse to the plumber to the hungry yellow circle, have conducted the same exercise: How do you make a shoe using as few geometric primitives as possible, and still have it read instantly? When a human hand had to draw hundreds of frames of footwear, this was a practical necessity. It also produced a symbol. These shoe shapes become genericized in the audience’s memory, and all fulfill the same purpose: to instantly convey the idea of ‘boot’.”
Social Media Footprint
The product definitely made its largest impression via social media. Feeds and FYPs were swarmed with many celebrities and all kinds of people taking these wacky boots out for a spin. These #BigRedBoots are one of the largest social media footprints made so far this year. Some have even referred to the idea of MSCHF making these as a “social experiment”.
These collectable boots had already been featured on WWE by Seth Rollins. They have also been seen on other stars like Lil Wayne, Diplo, and many others.
Large, red, round, and prominent are these foot coverings. These eye-catching boots make a statement at any event.
Celebrities have shown the multiple uses of these boots. They don’t have a theme, meaning, or place to wear them. There is nothing like them, deeming them so original and rare.
Janelle Monae is even seen shooting hoops in this versatile look <find social media post and embed>
Two notable platforms that show the #BigRedBoots are TikTok and Twitter. These social media platforms have been raging about these boots and its on everyone’s FYP.
The boots have also stirred up a heinous amount of memes. The feeds are very split between actual fashion news regarding the boots, modeling/styling, and memes. Some memes have commented at the relation to well-known cartoon characters like Mickey Mouse and Pac-Man.
The more uses and styles found for these boots will result in a continuation of the skyrocketing social media feedback.
Revenue & Worth
The product was seen on a numerous amount of celebrity’s before the initial post-Valentine’s day release. To restate the price, these are a high-end item going for $350.
Within less than 30 minutes, the hot commodity was sold out. The company was founded in 2016 and pulls in a lot of revenue from artistic creations. They tend to draw in from many miscellaneous aspects of life, but manage to draw in so much heat towards their products which are on the higher-end of pricing.
On resale markets, the shoes are anticipated to bring in a significant markup. Although asking prices on StockX are already well over one thousand dollars, they should decrease following release. These shoes have many “hype beasts” and apparel resellers oohing and ahhing.
Click the link below to bid:
https://stockx.com/mschf-big-red-boot
