John Fluevog marks 45 years with new L.A. store, re-issued Munster heels
John Fluevog, the funky Canadian shoe brand that’s shod the feet of famous folks from Alice Cooper and Jack White to Madonna and Drew Barrymore since 1970, is celebrating its 45th year by opening a second L.A.-area boutique and releasing a limited-edition shoe.
The brand’s 20th standalone store in North America opens on Abbot Kinney Boulevard on Friday which, according to the company, is International Fluevog Day. (We aren’t exactly sure how such things are determined but we’re just going to roll with it.)
That same day, the label will debut a new limited-edition shoe that references the silhouette that put the brand on the pop culture map – the Munster. The platform pump with the square toe box and sculptural chunky heel that’s part hourglass and part chess piece was first made in 1990 – and immortalized as a signature of club music style that same year when Lady Miss Kier wore a pair on the cover of Deee-Lite’s debut album “World Clique.”
The distinctive platform’s pop culture profile only grew when, the following year, Madonna would appear on screen (in her movie “Truth or Dare”) wearing a pair of platform Munsters – and little else that anyone seems to recall.
This isn’t the first time Fluevog has flogged a reboot of the Munster to mark a big birthday; the brand offered versions in floral brocades, suede and embossed leather to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The version hitting retail Friday is a two-tone number with a black platform, toe box and heel and white vamp that curves elegantly like a curly brace punctuation mark. The contrast makes it look like the ‘90s-era clubbing kicks have been outfitted with old-school spats, making the eye-catching shoe stand out all the more.
Dubbed the 45, the chunky new shoe is set to retail for $349 at all 20 brick-and-mortar stores in North America and online at fluevog.com.
John Fluevog, 1327 ½ Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice, opening Friday.
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