Our partnership with Chamula reworks their classic “Cancun” huarache, doing our best to keep the shoe’s original spirit intact while adding a few thoughtful shifts. Founded by Yuki Matsuda, Chamula is built on a relationship with skilled Indigenous craftspeople across Mexico. Known for their handwoven textiles, traditional footwear, and deep reverence for time-honored techniques, Chamula works at the intersection of heritage and utility — where every piece is made with intention and built to last.

Worn by Indigenous farmers and laborers, the huarache’s design logic predates branding entirely. Which is to say, it was invented not to impress anyone, but to function — under heat, weight, and the repetitive physics of agriculture. This custom Cancun introduces a tougher black rubber sole, which will mean something if you’ve ever seen old-school pairs from the ’60s and ’70s, found at markets in Oaxaca or Chiapas — worn smooth by decades of friction and somehow still intact. We also swapped in a stable, fixed heel to bring a subtle formality to the otherwise casual, utilitarian slip-on. The upper is woven with vegetable-tanned leather, left out in the open air and sun to age naturally, darken, and develop a tone and grain all its own. 

Built with tools that have more in common with woodworking than mass footwear production, each is made by hand in Mexico, using methods that haven’t changed in generations — and finished with a co-branded, debossed leather sock liner.