#HTE

How Difficult is it to Design Laceless Sneakers?

Laceless sneakers are nothing new, especially for adidas. But besides cleats, it’s tough to find a pair designed for high performance athletics. Enter adidas’s first laceless UltraBOOST sneakers, announced last week.

Designed for runners, the laceless UltraBOOSTs use Primeknit technology to their fullest advantage. Due to its decrease in elasticity, the horizontal forged Primeknit band running across the midfoot fits snug enough to make laces arbitrary. The shoe fits kind of like a sock instead of a shoe—similar to some previous UltraBOOSTs—so the foot and upper are able to move in unison. 

adidas made use of motion tracking technology Aramis (which they have done before) to help analyze movement of the body and understand how to accommodate it without adjustable pressure.

If there are any footwear designers reading this, I’m curious to hear them speak on the process of designing laceless sneakers: 

What particular design considerations are necessary? 

What kind of testing is involved?

What are your thoughts on the laceless UltraBOOSTs?