Vael: An Interesting Manifesto

I guess I've been sleeping on Vael because I just found out about these guys today.  While you surely are dangerously close to OD'ing on boots much like myself, Vael's collection is pretty impressive.  Some of their stuff is a little out of control (I'm only highlighting the "conservative" options), but I think that's the essence of the brand (just check out that insane logo and their brand philosophy below).  Most of this stuff isn't going to register as "classic" or "timeless" though that isn't necessarily a bad thing.  Fresh on the heels of Danner suing Rag & Bone for copyright infringement maybe it's time that brands started to blaze their own path instead of designing straight off their inspiration boards.  Also of note is Vael's brand manifesto which is currently leading the category of "most interesting of 2009".  Check this out...

"VAEL is a premium brand extending the range of mobile societies (Gesellschaft). We engineer and manufacture soft goods for the wandering global creative class."

What is "Gesellschaft" you ask?  Well, Vael has got you covered on that as well...

"When we made the transition over the last 200 years from tight communities (Gemeinschaft) to free and mobile societies (Gesellschaft), we escaped from bonds that were sometimes oppressive, yes, but into a world so free that it left many of us gasping for connection, purpose, and meaning."

Anyhow, if you plan on breaking out of you oppressive bonds to search for connection and purpose anytime soon you might want to get outfitted in a pair of these...

-L.A.S