How Carolyn Murphy Played Matchmaker for Vans and Proenza Schouler

Personal style, while a key focus in the current fashion zeitgeist, has always been at the core of Proenza Schouler’s vernacular. But now, the brand is doubling down on that intention. Just like the rest of their collections, the Puffy Slip-Ons and partnership with Vans represent a slight step outside the box for Hernandez and McCollough, one that will no doubt satisfy all those excited commenters.

Below, the designers discuss how the collaboration came to be, including the real reason Murphy posted “Finally!” on their teaser last week.

Why did you feel like this partnership with Vans was the right collaboration and the right timing?

Lazaro Hernandez: To be totally honest, we rarely seek out collaborations, which we know is such an annoying thing to say. They usually develop from a super-casual conversation with a friend or someone we happen to bump into. This one happened quite organically as well.

Jack McCollough: We saw our friend Carolyn Murphy at a party last year, and as we caught up, she mentioned that she had a friend who designed at Vans. We told her how we felt about Vans, and she casually said that she would love to make an intro to that team in case something could develop from that.

LH: When we eventually met, we immediately connected with the team and the culture and lifestyle they represented. The whole design team is exactly as you would imagine: surfers heading out to the beach for a few waves between meetings, etc. A total fantasy, really, but somehow also completely real. We were smitten.

Were you all fans of Vans before working on this project? If so, how did you like to style or wear them? Why do you think they’re such a classic?

LH: I grew up in Florida next door to a skater who skated for [skateboard brand] Powell-Peralta in the late 1980s. I thought he was the coolest guy in the world. He wore Vans all the time. I tried to emulate him as a kid, and that’s when I got into skating and convinced my mom to get me my first pair of Vans. It’s been a lifelong thing for me. I can’t remember not having a pair of Vans in my closet. Ever.

JM: When I finally left home for boarding school, I brought only a few things with me. One of them was my old beat-up pair of Vans, which represented some kind of youth ideal I aspired to at the time. I still own those.

What inspired the design of these Vans, and did you have a particular muse or vision for the women who will wear them?

LH: We wanted to pull the California out of the shoe a bit and inject a little of our New York into them instead. We pumped up the silhouette, cut it in gloss leather, polished the rubber a bit, and exaggerated every aspect of the shoe. It was important to take the sand and beach out of it somehow, and replace it all with a bit of concrete—to make it more us, more Proenza.

How does this collaboration speak to the recent evolution of your brand?

LH: In general, shoes have been our big focus recently. It’s one of our fastest-growing divisions. There’s so much that can be done around shoes: They are so technical, and the functionality around them is so varied; the possibilities are endless. In many ways, the design of a silhouette begins with the shoe. A shoe affects the way someone stands, the way they walk, and the desired attitude for a look starts with what shoe she is wearing. We find ourselves starting with the foot and moving upwards when designing a collection these days, which is something that wasn’t always the case.

When you collaborate with other brands, especially because it isn’t often, what is important to you when looking for partners, and what makes a fashion collaboration stand out in your mind?

JM: It has to be a very natural feeling. We wear Vans all the time personally, as do so many of our friends. They never get old, and they’re a true classic. We like collaborating with companies that are best in class or iconic for a very specific kind of product that we do not make. Vans is a perfect example of this.

Shop the Vans × Proenza Schouler Puffy Slip-On Shoes now at proenzaschouler.com and vans.com.

Brooke Bobb is the fashion news director at Harper’s Bazaar, working across print and digital platforms. Previously, she was a senior content editor at Amazon Fashion, and worked at Vogue Runway as senior fashion news writer.