For nearly 80 years, PUMA has been cranking out iconic sporting gear for those pursuing athletic excellence and trendsetting style. But once in a blue moon, every company releases an absolute unit of a product that is often hailed as a milestone creation for the company. The PUMA Mostro is that product.
First released in 1999, the PUMA Mostro (or “Monster” in Italian) is known for its spiked sole and versatile strap closure. The moniker Mostro is not just for show either; it refers to the shoe’s new, hybrid style, which took cues from two very different worlds: the sporty yet durable sprinting spikes of the 1960s, and the laid-back surfing shoes of the 1980s.
Though PUMA’s creative director, Heiko Densens, acknowledges that it’s a “weird shoe,” it’s such a phenomenal piece of footwear that it deserves to be pulled from PUMA’s archives and honoured for its 25th anniversary.
An iconic piece of footwear that has been reimagined as a second skin, the all-new Mostro makes its debut in two upscale, monochromatic styles made of perforated leather. With a combination of black and white colour-blocking on the upper, the Mostro adopts one of its most understated colour schemes to date.
TPU heel badges feature PUMA logos on the heels, and the banana-shaped split tongues are secured by buckles and elastic bands that meet the medial soles.
Cone-shaped rubber on the soles gives them grippy traction underfoot; the forefoot and heel have a different, more open pattern.