City Jeans’ New Tear-Away Gazelle Collab is Limited to 800 Pairs

Mom and pop sneaker stores have had a tough go of it lately, with tariffs making everything more expensive, slowing shopping tendencies, and more direct-to-consumer brand sales and third-party resellers than ever before. For shops like City Jeans, founded in the Bronx in 1993 and still running strong to this day, well, they’re diamonds in the rough.

A new City Jeans x adidas Gazelle collab takes the Diamonds in the Rough name literally, covering the shoe in a tear-away black upper that can be cut, scraped, or skated away to reveal a vibrant blue suede layer underneath. City Jeans makes it pretty easy with a tab on the back that can be pulled away to reveal the secondary layer. The black upper with white Three Stripes branding hints at what’s underneath with a bright blue tongue, laces, heel tab, and ankle collar. The limited quantity of the release is noted inside the ankle collar, with each shoe numbered out of 800.

“Built for the overlooked boroughs, the counted-out cities, and the people who shine in spite of it all,” City Jeans wrote about the collab. “This isn’t just a sneaker. It’s a reminder: pressure makes diamonds.”

The tear-away upper concept has been used on several shoes before, most notably on classic pairs of Nike Vandals and more recently in the Nike SB line, where designers have crafted shoes that are meant to be skated away to reveal a new colorway. In 2023, adidas got in on the tear-away game with a 4/20-themed pair of green grass suede Campus 80s bluntly wrapped in brown paper.

The City Jeans x adidas Gazelle Diamonds in the Rough will release October 4, 2025 exclusively through City Jeans. Available in men's sizing, the retail price is set at $130. Download the Sole Retriever mobile app to stay updated on the latest releases, raffles, news, and more in the sneaker and streetwear world.