The Leather-Wrapped Return of a Prada Shoe 20 Years Ahead of Its Time (EXCLUSIVE)
You've almost certainly never heard of the Prada Montecarlo sneaker. In fact, it's unlikely that anyone's had this particular shoe on their mind for the past two decades.
But as the Montecarlo turns 20, it's about time for a reintroduction. Prada's undersung sneaker masterpiece was so ahead of its time that it only feels of the moment now that we're two decades removed from its debut.
If any one item proves Prada's powerful prescience, it may very well be the Montecarlo.
The shoe came to be as part of Prada's Spring/Summer 2005 menswear collection and looks about as modern now as it did then. Of course, it also looked quite a bit different 20 years ago.
To accompany Prada's contemporary selection of ties and slacks, the Montecarlo wore panels of leather and mesh, with the slick red Prada Linea Rossa logo gracing its tongue (remember that two decades ago, even designer sneakers were considered sportswear, hence the branding of Prada's luxe athletic imprint).
As it returns for Spring/Summer 2025 as part of Prada's Re-Edition series, now available on Prada's website, the Montecarlo has received a well-timed facelift.
Its upper is now cut entirely from "antiqued" nappa, which is somehow even more supremely soft than conventional nappa leather, and it sits atop the same barely-there sole that wraps around to the heel akin to a driving loafer.
While the original Montecarlo leaned sporty in the vein of Prada's inimitable America's Cup, the new Montecarlo is overtly sumptuous.
Really, it's a thing of leather beauty.
The single-tone black, white, green, and red colorways render the sneaker extra sleek, streamlining the shoe's already curvaceous panels like a running shoe conceived by Oscar Niemeyer.
The shape is itself satisfying but the plush leather softens it into a tactile treat.
In general, Prada's footwear is perhaps the best representation of its Midas touch.
The Italian luxury label is doing everything right as of late — not that it ever wasn't — and its shoes are a particularly strong case study.
Beyond the Montecarlo, Prada has knocked out smart updates to the trail shoe and its own America's Cup while innovating in the realm of flat shoes, where sibling imprint Miu Miu remains king. The Prada Collapse, for instance, is a well-named pre-flattened shoe so opulent that it can barely support its own weight.
Tasteful stuff, to be sure, but all schooled in the way of the Montecarlo. How appropriate that the low-cut sneaker is returning to an era it foresaw two decades ago.
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