Cologne’s Sneaker Spot

Today, the new Acribik store opened its doors in what formerly was The Good Will Out. Let’s take a moment to pay tribute to this legendary Cologne footwear retail location.

Insolvencies are always terrible, and in the case of the TGWO it was a real tragedy. I am thinking of the owners’ and workers’ personal fates first here, of course. But the sudden demise of The Good Will Out at the turn of the year also marked the loss of an internationally important anchor of the scene in Cologne and all of Germany.

It was special to have such a store in my own city, and I am not only writing this because I took part in many events there as a DJ and part of the teams of Sneaker Freaker Germany and the Praise Magazine later on. Over the years, the store became internationally known and its collaborations were talked about around the globe.

Which is probably part of the reason why I managed to get the “Night” sneaker seen in this post only a few weeks ago. It originally came out in 2013 as part of the “Autobahn” collaboration between New Balance and The Good Will Out. For me, this is the best NB 577 ever. The stunning leathers, all the details that speak to the theme. Simply amazing.

A collaboration that represents the best era for such efforts. I like store collabs because they have personality and are in touch with the people – if the dude from the shop in your town can design a sneaker, you might be able to do this, too. Compare this to today’s online-raffle-only collabs with only the most famous designers and stars of the universe.

With Acribik, another independent sneaker store with a good reputation resides at the Handelstrasse 41 now, and I wish them only success. The footwear biz hasn’t gotten easier – which is why it is crucial for local stores to be able to counter the digital supremacy.

Many thanks to Hade for shooting and editing the images in this post.