New Brand Alert: PALLADIUM (France)

Palladium, the legendary footwear brand from France, was founded in 1920 as a vulcanised rubber manufacturer for the European aviation industry. When demand for airplane tyres plummeted following the end of WWII, the company opened a plant in Pont De Cheruy, near Lyon, and began to produce boots and shoes that boasted a quality equaled to their tyres.
Palladium shoes amassed a huge cult following, before seeing a quiet period towards the 90’s. In 2006, however, the label was successfully re-launched in the United States, its guerilla-style campaign in particular garnering the praise of media, bloggers, and consumers.


• PALLADIUM PAMPA: Palladium’s most well-known model, Palladuim “Pampa”, was first produced in 1947. So functional, durable and comfortable were these shoes, that after putting the boots to test in the harsh desert conditions of North Africa and the rugged terrain of the Atlas Mountains, the Légion étrangère (French army) adopted it for their use.


• PALLADIUM PAMPA OXFORD LO: Comfort and retro simplicity define the Palladium “Pampa Oxford Lo” canvas shoes. The 100% cotton canvas upper is stonewashed for a vintage look.

• PALLADIUM BAGGY: A little bit sneaker, a little bit boot, the Palladium “Baggy” shoes say you’re not confined by one style. Everything you want in footwear in terms of style and durability, the distressed canvas and matching laces create a rugged industrial appeal while the thick sole and padded foot bed provide comfort and protection.

• PALLADIUM LITE: This Spring/Summer, Palladium finally cracks the secret of the summer boot. How? With the switch to a full EVA outsole. Breathable, durable, with moisture wicking dri-lex, and as versatile as ever, the new Palladium LITE boot in the signature “Baggy” style weighs just 283.5g or 10oz - the lightest boot Palladium has ever made in its 60+ year history!


• PALLADIUM ENZYME WASH: Yet another interesting line from Palladium is the Enzyme wash collection, which features a variety of silhouettes -including Pampa and Baggy- with a grimy enzyme wash. The special washing process accelerates the visual fading and weathering of canvas, resulting in an authentic vintage look and feel.

All the Palladium styles are urbane and trendy and all-purpose enough for the ladies, too.

See Palladium spend an afternoon with it girls Daisy Lowe and Alice Dellal as they explore London:-

PALLADIUM “PALCACHING”
Palladium’s revival a few years back was greatly fueled by an unorthodox but brilliant guerrilla campaign called “Palcaching”, Palladium’s version of geocaching (where thousands of players use their GPS to find caches -containing anything from poetry to cash- hidden in locations around the globe; it is one of the fastest growing leisure activities in the world).
Palcaches or clues were hidden in Palladium retailers -as well as odd places like under bridges, next to trash cans, stuck to change, hanging from sign posts, even on people’s clothing- around cities like New York, Atlanta, San Francisco, Portland and Chicago, and when a player finds a cache and enter its code on the Palladium website, he/she wins free Palladium shoes and such.
The game became an underground sensation and, as luck would have it, Palladium shoes landed in the hands of Will Smith and a starring role in 'I Am Legend'. As word spread and demand exploded, Palladium caught the interest of K-Swiss, who eventually bought over the brand and expanded it.