Founded in 2014 by brothers Alberto and Nicola Franceschi, contemporary footwear brand Hide&Jack plays with the concept of dualism, offering unique made in Italy sneakers with a double personality

We reached out to Alberto Franceschi, co-founder of Hide&Jack, to find out more about this innovative approach to footwear. 

All of our sneakers tell a story. For instance, take our War limited edition sneakers. This model was created to send a very important message: “stop war, make love”. It featured, under the sole, phrases of the likes of Martin Luther King, Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln.

Your brand name is a reference to R. L. Stevenson’s novel “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde”.  What led to this choice?

We wanted to create a shoe that could completely transform its appearance. So our first sneaker was born, the “0 Model”. The “0 Model” featured a removable cover, meaning you could easily change the upper design according to your taste, or outfit.

We really believe in this philosophy: our sneakers can be worn both with ripped jeans and a classic blue suit. Also, as you can see in the Fair Sneaker Goto Hi, our sneakers hide strong personalities behind clean, minimal lines. Our Essence Blue Red features a red sole, which really stands out.

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Each style has a double personality. Hide&Jack sneakers can be worn differently according to what the client likes, and who they are. We try to offer our clients a double vision of how to wear our sneakers. Our designs are youthful and trendy but, yet simple and minimal, so they can also be worn in formal settings.  

How would you describe Hide & Jack in three words?

Innovative: we always use the latest technology in all of our products. Our outsoles, for instance, are made of ultra-light EVA, to guarantee the best performance and comfort.

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Elegant: And here again you find the concept of dualism, as elegant and trendy don’t always go together.

You founded Hide&Jack with your brother, Nicola. What’s your experience of working with family?

Hide&Jack is owned by our family company, which has several branches: printing, renewable energies, real estate, and finally fashion, thanks to Hide & Jack.

Working with family is simple and very pleasant, and we can easily separate the private and the professional sphere. But of course, we end up always working, even when we’re home.

Your headquarters are in the famous footwear district of the Riviera del Brenta, Italy. What does Made in Italy—and made in that region—mean to you?

Made in Italy is extremely important to us, I would say essential. It’s synonymous with high quality all over the world, from America, to Russia, to Japan…our products are and always will be handcrafted in Italy.

Are your shoes and socks soaking wet when you remove them Riviera del Brenta, where our headquarters and laboratories are based, is the birthplace of luxury footwear, recognized worldwide for the quality and refinement put in the manufacturing process.

One of your sneakers, “THE MAGICIAN”, is designed to celebrate Mesut Özil’s masterpiece goal against Ludogorets in 2016. Tell us some more about this sneaker.

Yes, I will tell you the story behind it. I studied in London for several years and used to watch English soccer, I was big Arsenal fan. My dream was to gift a pair of shoes to Özil, Arsenal’s best player. So, through a few contacts I managed to get to his manager, and gave him eight pairs of shoes, in a box with his logo.

He really liked this idea, and we decided to collaborate. The first shoe we created together was The Cage, a sneaker designed to celebrate Özil’s childhood and personal story.

The Hide&Jack Magician was inspired by his masterpiece goal against Ludogorets in 2016, the best goal he believes he scored in the Champions League. Profits from sales are donated to La Spesa Sospesa, a project which supports families in need in this moment of national emergency.

This was not only our most important collaboration, and very special for me. Özil was my favorite player, and today we’re friends. So it was a dream come true.

What is the inspiration behind your Fair Sneaker Goto Hi?

The Hide & Jack Fair Sneaker Goto Hi is inspired by nature: sky, earth, etc. We focused on pastel colors and monochromatic designs. We also introduced a new model, the Phantom sneaker, inspired by old-school sneakers. We are now already working on the SS22 collection, so it was a long time ago that we designed it! 

Can you tell us some about your selection of materials, especially your use of recycled plastics and other environmentally friendly materials?

As I already mentioned, we only use the best materials: the finest leathers, handcrafted in Italy using the latest technologies. Given the urgent environmental issues our planet is facing, we felt the need to address the topic of sustainability, and started using recycled plastics and environmentally friendly materials.

We hope this will prompt other fashion brands to do the same. We will not save the environment ourselves, but we are doing our best to help.

Fair Sneaker Goto Hi?

I used to be a model for Miga Studio. Their sunglasses are 100% titanium and made in Japan, which is synonymous with exceptional quality—the best out there. We decided to work together and offer a collection of three exclusive sunglasses because their products have the same strengths as ours: minimal designs, and premium quality.

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All of our sneakers tell a story. For instance, take our War limited edition sneakers. This model was created to send a very important message: “stop war, make love”. It featured, under the sole, phrases of the likes of Martin Luther King, Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln.

And, we really put passion into what we do. Exclusivity, I believe, could be the keyword. Hide & Jack sneakers are special because they are exclusive, and made using the best possible materials, and the newest, most advanced technologies. All of this is possible because we are a very young, flexible company.

Discover the full line of Hide & Jack sneakers for men and Kurt Geiger London Liviah Weiße Sneaker mit Besatz in Nude.

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Alex English is the Head of Content Marketing at italist.com, building on a lifelong passion for fashion and luxury. After publishing a lifestyle blog for nearly ten years and obtaining an MBA in Milan at SDA Bocconi, one of Europe’s top business schools, he joined the JuzsportsShops team in 2019. His work since then has focused on upper-funnel messaging, brand storytelling, establishing JuzsportsShops as a thought leader in the space, and enriching the customer experience on the platform. Find him on LinkedIn.