Three Salomon Silhouettes Every Sneakerhead Should Own

It's one of the most unlikely sneaker success stories of the year so far, but Salomon’s range of techy trail runners is on every sneakerhead’s wishlist right now. As the Gorpcore trend trudges on, both style and substance play a part in creating those must-have silhouettes, and both are elements that Salomon absolutely nails.

Born in the French Alps in 1947, the brand was originally built with trails, mountains and skiing in mind, but its forward-thinking silhouettes and adventurous colourways have managed to catch the eyes of the fashion crowd. If you’ve been thinking about picking up a pair, then we’ve pulled together a quick guide to the silhouettes you need to know right now, so read on to find out more.

Salomon’s XT-6 is easily one of its most popular styles right now, and the silhouette you would have seen taking over Instagram’s mood board accounts. The style was originally launched in 2012 as a top-of-the-line trail runner, so its make-up had to be strong enough to see the wearer through ultra-marathons and harsh mountain conditions. The style was actually phased out a few years later, but revived in 2016 by the brand’s special projects manager, Jean Philippe Lalonde, who received an email saying that the XT-6 moulds were being sent to be destroyed. Luckily, Lalonde was a fresh hire who had been tasked with helping the brand break into the fashion market, and he instantly saw the potential in the model. He noticed just how well the shape of the sneaker took to crazy colour combinations and set about with a plan to relaunch the silhouette into high-end retailers in 2018. The rest, as they say - is history, and the model is still enjoying crazy levels of success four years on.

Another monumental milestone in the brand’s recent history, the Salomon Speedcross is largely accredited for being the first Salomon silhouette to start to capture the fashion crowd’s attention. The Speedcross 3 arrived in 2011, and saw previous iterations get updated with a wider heel for added stability, more cushioning and a welded upper. Though its earlier generations remained a little more underground, the Speedcross 3 managed to solve the issues the previous silhouettes had come with, and the brand had sold over 20 million pairs of Speedcross in 2015 - the same year the brand managed to strike a deal with French fashion retailer A Broken Arm.

The style received a bit of a visual update with the Speedcross 4 where it lost the bold silhouette and chunky lugs that had made it so popular, and was met with a mixed response. That being said, London skate brand PALACE still picked the silhouette for its first collaboration with the brand in 2019 - a move that helped to solidify Salomon’s move into the streetwear realm and change the sneaker scene as we knew it.

While the XT-6 is as sleek as they come, Salomon’s XT-RUSH takes on a slightly more rugged appearance. Another running shoe that’s designed to tackle long distances, the XT-RUSH was designed with the urban runner in mind, and borrows the tried and tested XT-6 sole unit and merges it with a sock-like mesh upper for a more secure fit. Though not as steeped in heritage as the two models prior, the XT-RUSH is a super-practical silhouette that still manages to combine the fashion-forward elements that have made the brand so popular with the comfort you’d expect from running shoes, with bright colour pops appearing across the upper and an inbuilt Agile Chassis System for stability and support.

Which Salomon silhouette will you be picking up? With plenty of colourways to pick from, hit the links to shop, or check out the rest of the range over at ASOS.