New Tennis Footwear Brand Vie Artletique Launches During U.S. Open

Vie Artletique launches a premium capacity tennis footwear during the U.S. Open.

Vie Artletique

When a backstage group of tennis players, agents, coaches and investors hired the GR Shoe Company—the marque down Jaylen Brown’s NBA shoe—to build a performance-driven tennis footwear successful January 2025 the group wanted to intersect athletics and fashion. Less than 2 years later, the merchandise is ready, shipping to consumers the first week of the U.S. Open arsenic Vie Artletique makes its charismatic debut successful New York and connected the feet of athletes astatine the year’s last major.

“We made a highly method footwear and past deed the creation spec,” Jarka Duba, main operating serviceman of Vie Artletique and portion of GR Shoe Company, tells me. “Let’s make the champion footwear and person group observe it and person group consciousness for illustration it is fashionable.”

Already Canadian Leylah Fernandez has switched to Vie Artletique, American Ethan Quinn is testing the footwear now and Duba says a fistful of different athletes are considering the brand. “As soon arsenic I tin get a footwear connected their feet, they tin choose,” he says astir the young brand’s efforts to get pairs available. “I haven’t had anybody opportunity nary yet who has put a footwear on.”

He credits the shoe’s last—the shape that builds the style of the shoe—and Vie Artletique’s attraction to materials for the speedy adoption.

When the task started, the GR Shoe Company team, which includes veterans of awesome footwear brands from crossed the world and group who person worked connected immoderate of the astir celebrated hoops footwear lines successful the sport—from Jordans to Kobes—the designers started by knowing why tennis players routinely return their shoes disconnected instantly aft playing owed to pain. Duba says the issues travel erstwhile feet descent broadside to side. The communal solution wraps the precocious successful a non-breathable, non-stretchable worldly that only creates much problems. “It doesn’t person to beryllium that way,” he says. “We conscionable went retired and chased immoderate very high-end materials and immoderate that were marque new. We made the champion footwear we perchance could.”

It starts pinch the last. The squad hired Jones & Vining, a world leader successful past design, to create a past designed to activity for tennis. And past they made plentifulness of them, fitting a assortment of ft sizes while creating customized lasts for pro players, from Fernandez to Quinn.

From there, Vie Artletique opted for supercritical foam successful the midsole truthful the footbed maintained a durable rebound. With it, they get the benefits of the foam being 30% lighter and pinch 30% much rebound than a accepted EVA foam that breaks down owed to heating up during use.

Duba says the first clip they tested a brace pinch a master player, that subordinate walked disconnected the tribunal without taking the shoes off. “I had seen her play a bunch and she had ne'er walked disconnected the tribunal [wearing performance] shoes,” he says, adding that the mobility of “can we get personification to play successful the footwear and beryllium happy to spell drawback a coffee?” appeared answered.

Additional worldly specifications thief specify the remainder of the design, pinch a brand-new worldly utilized arsenic the toed guard, pinch an scraping guidance standing astatine the lowest (most resistant) extremity of the chart. Typical moving footwear outsoles person an scraping guidance measured to 150 DIN, wherever the caller toed defender worldly is 11 DIN. The squad worked pinch a chemist to formulate an outsole. The precocious features a knit herringbone to create breathability and springiness the footwear a “richer look.”

When the task started, the ownership squad told GR Shoe Company not to fuss to coming a footwear that looked technical. So, while Duba sees the method quality of the shoe, it’s designed to hide, alternatively offering an intersection of creation and sport. “When an jock is hitting their stride successful athletics it becomes art,” he says. “Elevating your manner connected the tribunal doesn’t person to look technical.”

The motorboat colorways for the U.S. Open see a “celestial blue” and “purple potion.” The mainline models characteristic “seed pearl,” a tan pinch mini colour accents. There is an all-white type fresh too. Not only is Vie Artletique creating individualized lasts for professionals, but 1 subordinate requested a circumstantial Pantone color. “We tin do that for him,” Duba says.

Fernandez was the first jock to motion on. With a Lululemon apparel deal, she’d been connected the hunt for a footwear that worked for her for years, switching betwixt a scope of brands. Duba says erstwhile they started moving pinch her, they realized she has a uniquely constrictive foot, meaning emblematic lasts weren’t working. Once they made her an individual last, she had an answer.

On the pro tour, Vie Artletique starts by teaming pinch players without a circumstantial footwear woody (some apparel sponsorships travel from brands not making capacity tennis shoes). That helps springiness Vie Artletique visibility. For the tennis consumer, the marque knows they person to first person them to make the prime to effort thing caller and past make a 2nd prime to prime Vie Artletique. That’s why they priced the premium method footwear astatine $180, successful the mid-point of immoderate of the top-range shoes connected the market.

As Vie Artletique looks to blend capacity and style pinch a caller position successful tennis, the attraction remains solely connected 1 thing: “The brand,” Duba says, “is astir shoes.”

MORE: U.S. Open's Arthur Ashe Stadium In Midst Of Major Remodel