Global designers come together for day two of Dubai Fashion Week

DUBAI: Spanish luxury brand Loewe has unveiled a collaboration with Swiss high-end running shoe brand On — and Emirati motor racing driver Amna Al-Qubaisi stars in the campaign.  

The campaign for the new Cloudtilt shoe was shot by French fashion photographer Thibaut Grevet and sees Al-Qubaisi — who is the UAE’s first female racer — posing in a pair of the shoes. Al-Qubaisi currently races in the F1 Academy for MP Motorsport and was the first Emirati woman to win a Formula 4 UAE Trophy Race at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2019 and the first to compete in a Formula E test in Saudi Arabia in 2018.  

Other talents featured in the campaign include gymnast Yonghon Huh, dancers Roy Kaneza and Hortense de Gromard, BMX rider Cindy Dos Reis, animal flow instructor Stefan Crainic, and Liu Hong, the world champion and Olympic gold medalist race walker. 

The Cloudtilt shoe incorporates CloudTec® Phase — a computer-generated midsole technology that offers cushioning with fewer components for a lightweight ride. Featuring a knitted sock construction, speed laces and LOEWE × On collaborative branding, the new shoe comes in a number of colorways. The Cloudtilt will be available in two drops, each with its own colour palette: Men’s drop 1 on Oct. 12 features all white, all black, lime green, khaki green and forever blue, while Women’s drop 1 features all white, all black, lime green, purple rose, and all navy. Men’s drop 2 in January 2024 features sand, wild rose, and slate grey, while Women’s drop 2 features sand, wild rose, and beet red.  

The shoe features an outer sole crafted from EVA foam to minimise the use of rubber, as well as an engineered mesh upper made from 99 percent recycled polyester. 

In the Middle East, the collection will be exclusively available at the LOEWE x On pop-up at Dubai’s Mall of the Emirates from Oct. 12-27.  

From her early days karting at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina and the Al-Ain raceway as a nine-year-old, Al-Qubaisi has set an example for other aspiring female drivers in the UAE and the region. 

“I’ve heard in our team, that there are two girls competing in karting, and they’re doing pretty well,” she previously told Arab News. “I’ve heard also a younger female Emirati is competing in Europe. So we are seeing a couple of girls getting into the sport and raising more awareness of the sport. So, hopefully, we can see them also in single seaters, or maybe even in GT cars.”