In a fashion landscape driven by reinvention, few flows feel as instinctively right—and as unexpectedly bold—as the union of UGG and Reese Cooper. One, a legacy name known globally for plush sheepskin boots that defined early 2000s comfortwear. The other, a rising force in American menswear who merges outdoorsman functionality with street-savvy design. Together, they’ve created a collection that pushes both labels into new, uncharted terrain—both literally and conceptually.

This is not a nostalgia play. It’s a reinvention rooted in context. UGG and Cooper don’t just revisit the past—they rewrite the blueprint for what utility, comfort, and outdoor culture can look like in 2025.

A Collision of Comfort and Craft

At its core, the collaboration is a meeting between UGG’s heritage of tactile comfort and Cooper’s storytelling-rich design process. Known for his Los Angeles–based label Reese Cooper®, the designer has built a reputation for infusing garments with meaning, terrain, and timelessness. His collections often unfold like field guides—blending trail-ready tech, rustic textures, and contemporary silhouettes into a cohesive visual language.

That ethos translates directly into the UGG partnership. Instead of repackaging the classic UGG boot, Cooper has reimagined it through a lens of rugged modularity and terrain-specific purpose.

The collection includes:

• The Eastridge Boot, a weatherproof, rubberized silhouette with a lace-up system, reminiscent of a hiker but lined with the unmistakable warmth of UGG’s signature fleece.
• The Tasman X Boot, transformed with molded exteriors, heavy-duty treads, and Cooper’s distinctive topographic references.
• A selection of fleece-lined slip-ons and outdoor-ready sandals, balancing UGG’s comfort DNA with Cooper’s functional materials and earth-toned palette.

Every piece feels as ready for the forest as it does for a fashion week streetstyle set.

Design Language: Outdoors Meets Innovation

Reese Cooper’s work has always been about telling stories through landscape—imagining what a modern American explorer might wear, from Redwood trails to Brooklyn rooftops. In the UGG collaboration, he leans into this sensibility but sharpens the focus: what if luxury could feel wild? What if heritage brands could live in the future?

Textures take center stage. UGG’s signature suede and fleece are present, but they’re encased in technical overlays, ripstop nylons, waterproof rubber shells, and custom toggles. The boots and mules appear familiar in shape, but foreign in context—like relics unearthed from a parallel evolution of fashion where outdoor gear is the default, not the exception.

Colorways stay grounded: silt, shale, moss, bone, and fog. There’s a refusal to chase seasonal brights or gimmicky palettes. Instead, each tone feels like it was drawn from the soil, sky, or stone—a quiet nod to the collaboration’s organic intentions.

Why UGG? Why Now?

UGG, long synonymous with comfort-first footwear, has spent recent years repositioning its identity. From directional collections with Y/Project and Telfar to the unexpected virality of its platform boots, the brand has proven its willingness to evolve beyond the “basic” label that once defined it.

In collaborating with Reese Cooper, UGG finds a new chapter: one that bridges its comfort heritage with true outdoor utility and narrative design. This is not just fashion. It’s functionality wrapped in story.

As Lindsey Dicola Dashoff, Senior Director of Brand Communications at UGG, noted in a statement:

“Reese’s vision aligns perfectly with our evolution. He brings a sense of place, purpose, and process to everything he creates. That’s the type of authenticity our consumers expect in 2025.”

For Cooper, UGG offered a platform that wasn’t just about aesthetics—but about redefining where, why, and how we wear our gear.

“UGG is about comfort,” Cooper said in a press release. “But I wanted to take that comfort off the couch and into the world.”

Campaign as Moodboard: Natural Context, Real People

The collaboration’s campaign is a visual testament to the collection’s philosophy. Shot on location in California’s Eastern Sierra backcountry, the imagery features real creatives—musicians, photographers, and stylists—trekking through rivers, mossy slopes, and cliff edges. There’s no artificial set design, no green screens. Just people in motion, moving through the world with utility and ease.

Each image blurs the line between editorial fashion and field journal. The boots look worn, dusted with dirt. The fleece-lined slip-ons peek out from campfire setups. The color palette of the collection matches the environment, not the other way around.

In a fashion landscape saturated with glossy, studio-shot campaigns, this choice feels grounded, honest, and alive.

The Broader Implication: Utility as Identity

Beyond the aesthetics, the UGG x Reese Cooper collaboration speaks to a larger movement in fashion: the desire for garments and footwear that do something. In a time when climate, mobility, and culture are shifting rapidly, people want pieces that are ready for change—that work across terrains, timelines, and temperatures.

This isn’t just about looking outdoorsy. It’s about living with intention.

The boots aren’t status symbols. They’re tools. The fleece-lined clogs aren’t ironic—they’re practical. And in 2025, that practicality has become a new kind of luxury: one rooted in feeling prepared, grounded, and real.

A Merge Done Right

Fashion connects are everywhere. But few achieve what this one does: mutual transformation. UGG steps into terrain-focused credibility. Reese Cooper extends his ecosystem with new textures, new shapes, and new possibilities.

And the consumer? They get something rare: a product that tells a story they can walk in.

This isn’t about hype. It’s about habit. And that’s the most powerful shift of all.

Impression: Not a Footnote—A Trailhead

The UGG x Reese Cooper collection doesn’t feel like a capsule to check off or archive. It feels like a beginning—a new standard for how legacy comfort brands and emergent storytellers can meet at the crossroads of utility, beauty, and emotion.

No comments yet.