PUMA joins Super Yaya for a new interpretation of the Speedcat, launching on 16 April 2026. The collaboration brings together PUMA’s athletic archive with the research-led approach of Super Yaya, the womenswear label founded by Rym Beydoun. Zalando supports the project, with the first release available online from the launch date, followed by availability on super-yaya.com and at Dover Street Market Paris on 30 April 2026.
SNEAKERS
Rym Beydoun founded Super Yaya in 2016 after graduating from Central Saint Martins. Her work draws from an Ivorian-Lebanese background, combining references from both cultures through material, craft, and design. Her practice includes work with textiles sourced from local artisans in Beirut, developed through her atelier. This collaboration marks the brand’s entry into a wider audience through a global sportswear platform.
The collection introduces two separate drops, each built around a different material and visual direction. The first drop presents a canvas Speedcat inspired by the movement and gestures associated with Mudra Afrique. It arrives in three colorways: black and white, blue and green, and brown and almond. A tonal polka dot motif appears on the formstrip, inverted to create a graphic effect. The palette remains neutral and unisex, allowing the design to adapt to different contexts. Each pair includes an additional set of contrasting laces, offering an alternative finish.
The second drop, released on 30 April, introduces a patent leather version of the Speedcat. This iteration appears in plum and black, using real patent leather combined with an embossed polka dot motif. The pattern connects to Super Yaya’s previous work, where it first appeared in the Spring Summer 2025 collection. The glossy surface shifts the sneaker into a more formal context, while the color selection keeps it adaptable for different uses.
Beydoun describes the project through contrast, placing opposing ideas at the centre of the design. She references sport and chic, classic and edgy, corporate and playful, and day and night. Her connection to the Speedcat dates back to the 1990s, which informed her approach to the silhouette. She also points to PUMA’s archive as a starting point for reinterpretation, using it to develop a version that speaks to the present.
The campaign features South Sudanese-British model and activist Alek Wek as well as Pooja Mor and Carloline Reuter It draws from movement, portraiture, and cultural reference points. The first chapter takes place in a dance studio, informed by the visual language of Mudra Afrique, using both color and black-and-white imagery to document gesture and pose. The second chapter introduces framed compositions and a more editorial structure, shifting the visual tone while maintaining continuity with the first part.
