Jjjjound x ASICS Gel Kayano 14
Honestly, I'm excited to see the Kayano 14 getting love with collaborators. The Gel Kayano 14 is one of my favorite models that Asics has. Once I saw they let jjjjound have a chance with it, I was pretty excited to see the final outcome.
Materials: The Gel Kayano, in my mind, isn't really comparable to a New Balance or AM1 given the fact that it's more of an aesthetic/comfort type of running sneaker in the same category as the 1906r. The upper consists of this white, big hole mesh that I feel is very breathable and comfortable on foot. The majority of the upper consists of this brushed metallic silver & hits of black that are made up of this soft, plastic like material. Lastly, there is subtle branding throughout the sneaker with the jjjjound logo on the insole and on the right sneaker near the heel.
Comfort/Sizing: I personally find this model extremely comfortable. I personally have the grey GR pair that came out last year and I wear them in all conditions. I have worn them when we go walking on trails and they have held up very nicely. This model has no break in period and is comfy straight out the box. The feel on foot is very squishy but doesnt feel unstable like boost. In terms of sizing, I always get the Kayano 14 in my tts, size 8, and it has always fit my foot perfectly.
Overall Opinion: I feel when you look at jjjjound as a brand, they always use simple and minimalist designs & colorblocking. Out of the pack, the black pair is my favorite out of the 2. I will say even though it is a very simple design, I do feel that this colorway does look very nice on foot. My main gripe with this collab is that when jjjjound does a collab, they usually make up for the price increase with higher quality materials. Imo, I didn't personally feel the price increase was justified, however, when you look at Adidas/Gucci, the retail price was over $800,then afterwards they released GR's with very similar designs. With jjjjound becoming one of the more popular collaborators, I can somewhat understand the rise of pricing.