Adidas Stan Smith 'Cloud White'
Colorway: Cloud White/Cloud White/Cloud White · Style code: CQ2469 · Release date: April 28, 2018 · Price: $2452 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: Adidas Stan Smith Paul Smith Manchester United Sneakers (HP3134) · Adidas Stan Smith 'Cloud White' (CQ2871) · adidas Stan Smith 'Cloud White' (F36575) · adidas Stan Smith 'Cloud White' (FX5500) · adidas Stan Smith J 'Cloud White' (F34338)
Every part of this Stan Smith is Cloud White: the upper, the heel tab that is normally green, and the sole. Released April 28, 2018, at $150, it costs well above the $90 standard white and green pair, and that price gap separates it more clearly than the colour does. With no accent to look at, attention goes to construction: the three rows of perforations on each side, the padded tab at the Achilles and the clean line of the cupsole.
An all-white shoe lives or dies on how it is finished, and the tonal approach here has a specific purpose: it removes the tennis signature so the shape can stand alone. Without the green tab, the Stan Smith stops being a recognisable sports shoe from across a room and becomes a plain white low-top with an unusually restrained upper. That is the appeal for anyone who wears it with tailoring or wants a shoe that works under any colour. The trade-off is upkeep, since a single shade shows scuffs and yellowing sooner than a version with darker trim. Kept clean, it is about as minimal as the design gets in a standard cut.