Keep calm and carry on wearing sneakers. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s misstep towards coolness wearing pristine Adidas Samba sneakers has drawn criticism but could drive sales.
Sunak has apologised to sneaker fans for wearing the style, popular with influencer Hailey Bieber and supermodel Bella Hadid, to a Downing Street interview last week. Despite claims by men’s magazine GQ that “Sunak took an eternally cool sneaker and ruined it for everyone,” the apology was unnecessary.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the offending Adidas Samba sneaker that he formally apologised for wearing during an interview.Credit: @rihisunakmp/instagram
“No one wants to see politicians trying to be cool,” says Simon “Woody” Wood, editor-in-chief of footwear bible Sneaker Freaker. “It’s like thinking of your parents having sex, but this won’t have an impact on Adidas sales.”
“The average 12-year-old girl doesn’t give a toss what the prime minister of Britain is wearing when she’s buying sneakers. Sambas are popular because times are tough, and they’re great value [$180]. If anything it might help sales.”
Fashion brands spend millions of dollars aligning with celebrities that represent their values, with Dua Lipa at Versace, Margot Robbie at Chanel and tennis player Carlos Alcaraz at Louis Vuitton, but unsolicited support from politicians can have an unexpectedly positive result.
Hailey Bieber wearing Adidas Sambas in Los Angeles in July.Credit: Getty
“You might find that in the next three months the stock price for Adidas goes up because their sales have increased,” says Nikita Garg, professor of marketing at UNSW Sydney’s Business School. “Having a prime minister wear a brand and then apologise for it is incredible publicity. It’s a marketer’s dream.”
“This is not about being cool, which most brands seek. Brand coolness is limited to a smaller segment of customers, so the broader profile of a politician might be beneficial to them.”
The power of politics paid off for Loro Piana, the cashmere brand owned by luxury conglomerate LVMH. In 2022, brand representative Pier Luigi Loro Piana distanced the label from Russian President Vladimir Putin when he wore one of its €12,000 ($20,000) jackets to a Moscow rally.
