Acupuncture - The Brand
‘Creating energy out of chaos’ is the mantra of Acupuncture founder Phil De Mesquita. In the early Nineties, when the punk scene was raging in London, Mesquita and fashion stylist Barnsley joined forces to open their shop Acupuncture in Soho. The original premise of Acupuncture was to sell 70’s style trainers and vintage designer clothing, including classic Vivienne Westwood pieces – the queen of punk fashion herself.
In 1995 the Acupuncture shop closed and saw the departure of Barnsley. From their humble beginnings, Acupuncture was able to rise to international acclaim. Mesquita immediately took to the footwear market, designing 5, 000 pairs of his first trainer, all selling out within the UK and Japan. A year later Acupuncture was approached by a Nike factory in Korea, allowing the brand to design their own sole units for their trainers for the first time, instead of depending upon others. By 1998, Acupuncture had 12 different styles of trainers on sale, even including one with the Union Jack for football fans to sport during the World Cup that year.
Acupuncture’s rebellious, anarchist attitude was even apparent in the names of their shoes, including cheeky names like ‘Roach’ and ‘Mr Blunder’, a style of trainers singer Robbie Williams was pictured wearing in tabloid paper The Sun, during a night out on the town. With their tongue in cheek reputation, Acupuncture have attracted followers in the form of some of the world’s most vibrant superstars, including; Gwen Stefani, Jude Law, Bjork and Madonna. Man brand Acupuncture’s favourability with the stars is no doubt a reflection of their own rising star.
Acupuncture - Classic styles
Retro meets urban trend in Acupuncture’s distinctive street looks. Renowned for their stylish footwear, Acupuncture’s range of trainers rivals that of some of the big names in sports. With a strong aesthetic when it comes to design, Acupuncture’s shoes are not only visually desirable, but their high performance materials give them added edge. Moulded soles, reflective strips and velcro fastening are just a few of the features that provide you with a durable yet comfortable shoe.
From hi tops to sneakers, Acupuncture’s footwear range is immense. Utilising bold colours, artistic graphic prints, as well as classic black or white trainers leaves a choice for every man. Classic designs include: the Urban Graffiti Trainers ABL03-81, the stunning Graphic Print Trainers ABL06-72, the Multi Hi-Tops AP301, Stitched Fabric Hi Tops AP320, and the Metallic Print Trainers AP333.
Alongside their freestyle footwear, Acupuncture’s caps and trucker hats are both classically cool with that rebellious sense of humour you’d expect of Acupuncture. The Graphic Print Baseball Cap UHA32701 or the Snowflake Flat Cap UHA39201 are a fail safe for all, whilst the Subversive Mickey range pays homage to our childhood favourite cartoon mouse. Mickey caps include the styles; UHA3357, UHA3309, and UHA33799.
For storage solutions, Acupuncture have a range of bags, holdalls, laptop cases and backpacks that have a classic style making them suitable for any kind of outing. For a more fun approach, the Mickey range also translates over to a line of tote bags, backpacks and shoulder bags. With Acupuncture there’s no escape from the fun side of street fashion.
