Successful Black-owned vegan restaurant Slutty Vegan is teaming up with fashion giant Steve Madden to create the first-ever “vegan sneakers.”
Slutty Vegan and Steve Madden made the announcement on Instagram, saying they would create #MADDSlutty. The white sneakers will feature a yellow inlay with the word “vegan” written on them and red stripes along the bottom. A keychain depicting the Slutty Vegan bus will dangle on the side of the sneaker, WSBTV reported.
The limited-edition shoes are also the first-ever vegan shoe to be approved by animal rights organization PETA. Also, $1 from every sale of the $99.95 shoe will be donated to the group.
The sneakers are already available online and are available on Steve Madden’s website, the Slutty Vegan’s website and in any Slutty Vegan restaurant.
Madden met community activist and Slutty Vegan founder Aisha “Pinky” Cole, through the Fearless Fund in February 2021, The Atlanta Voice reported. The Fearless Fund is the first venture capital fund founded by women of color for women of color.
Atlanta-based Cole raised $25 million in late May to expand her Slutty Vegan brand. Her business, which she started in 2018, is now valued at $100 million. She announced she plans to use the money to open 10 Slutty Vegan locations by the end of 2022 and an additional 10 in 2023.
“When you encounter the kind of bold sensibility and exploding popularity of Slutty Vegan, collaborating with them was obvious. Pinky and I share that dare-to-disrupt spirit,” Madden said in a statement.
“I am thrilled that Slutty Vegan is able to partner with such an amazing company like Steve Madden,” Cole said in her statement.
“When the opportunity presented itself, it was a no-brainer. This collaboration is bigger than just a shoe — it is about showing people that you don’t have to live inside a box. You can be disruptive and break every glass ceiling, even if it means being a burger joint that has a vegan shoe,” Cole stated.
