Zayn’s Fashion Career: From Tour Merch To Luxury Shoes

Zayn is adding yet another title to his mononymous brand: Come next year, he'll officially be a shoe (zhoe?) designer, when his first-ever collaboration with luxury brand Giuseppe Zanotti drops. The performer shared this intriguing tidbit of information ever so casually in a new profile with GQ. The high-end shoe brand then confirmed the news — and sealed the deal with an already-booming hashtag — on Instagram, adding that the collection consists of four styles for men. A representative for Giuseppe Zanotti noted to Refinery29 that GQ's latest issue indeed features an exclusive preview of Zayn's designs, which are set to launch in January 2017. In the photoshoot that accompanies the interview, the performer is photographed exclusively in Giuseppe Zanotti footwear — desert boots, zip-up brown leather shoes, and silvery sneakers. Zayn's designs for the brand take cues from his personal style, which he describes as having "a whole rock sort of feel" as of late (that's rock, not robot), with a penchant for "big boots, skinny jeans, dark T-shirts, and rings." Zayn and Zanotti first crossed paths at Paris Fashion Week last year, according to GQ. The musician picked up on a shared ambition in their work, which made for easy collaboration. "Style is not being afraid to be bold about some things, or to say what it is you have to say," he told the magazine. "I feel like Giuseppe does that with his collection — and I try to do that with my music."

From the looks of the shopping credits for the shoot, the collection veers toward the high-end, with a three-figure price tag — something for which Zanotti, celeb footwear go-to, is well-known. Luckily, fans can still get in on Zayn's designs via his Mine of Mine merch, which starts at a much more attainable £20, according to Vogue. (Gigi Hadid is a fan.) Zanotti has been on a roll collab-wise lately: Giuseppe x Zayn comes only a few weeks after the brand announced Giuseppe x Jennifer (as in Lopez). Keep an eye on the hashtag for Zayn's footwear pair-up to catch more glimpses of the collection.