Adidas and Prada: Or should that be Pradidas or Adada?

Italian fashion house Prada and German sportswear giant Adidas are joining forces to produce a limited edition trainer and sailing shoe.

It’s the first time two of the most famous names in retailing have combined in what they say is a long-term partnership.

But what to call the venture? Pradidas and Adada are among the favourites in the Twittersphere.

Prada’s marketing department could probably do better, though, as they’ve already demonstrated peerless descriptive powers in the press release.

“The aim of this partnership is to investigate the realms of heritage, technology and innovation – and to challenge conventional wisdom through unexpected strategies.”

The shoes will be “based on an authentic fusion of fashion and sport” that mixes their “sporting heritage and visionary approach”.

And anyone who thinks they’ll just produce trainers that will be as smelly as the rest after being worn a few times should think again.

These won’t be any old trainers, as Prada is bringing an “iconicity” that “resides in the interplay between form and function, luxury and utility, and the ability to juxtapose different ideologies”.

Snide jibes aside, Prada does not get involved in many collaborations, so a tie-up with Adidas was seen as a surprise among the fashionistas and a coup for the German company. As GQ magazine points out, the companies “sit in different fields”.

Adidas has dipped its toe into the high-end fashion world before with collaborations with Stella McCartney, Rick Owens, and Kanye West’s Yeezy line.

The collection launches next month with two styles of trainer, and next year will see the release of sailing footwear under the Luna Rossa label. The limited-edition footwear will all be made at Prada’s factory in Italy.

And there’s no doubt that trainers are not just fashion statements these days, but also collectors’ items. In July, a collection of rare trainers put up for auction in New York by Sothebys sold for more than $1m.