Some collaborations begin with an idea. This one began with a jacket - and returns to where the Left Hand story began.
Saragozza is a district of Bologna, the birthplace of Massimo Osti and the city in which the foundations of Left Hand were laid. It is also Bologna that gives its name to the traditional shoemaking construction used to create the shoe. The name Saragozza therefore felt instinctive: a connection between place, history, product and process.
For the first two seasons of Left Hand, Osti developed the collection almost entirely in Micro - an innovative material created through a process of pressing fibres, using a method similar to that traditionally employed by the paper industry. Combining nylon and microfibres, Micro offered exceptional durability, required little maintenance and, crucially, could be cut and left with a raw, unhemmed edge.
One particular Micro jacket from the Left Hand archive, dating from 1993, makes a feature of that characteristic. Its distinctive raw-cut fringe became the starting point for the Saragozza - our first piece of footwear, created in collaboration with Meanforme.
From archive to footwear
Rather than simply reproducing an archival detail, the intention was to translate its character into something new.
The fringe of the original Micro jacket has been reinterpreted across the upper of the Saragozza, creating a direct visual connection between Left Hand's past and a completely new silhouette. What began as a consequence of an experimental fabric more than three decades ago becomes a defining element of a contemporary shoe.
That same emphasis on material experimentation and construction runs throughout the Saragozza.
Italian suede
The upper is cut from Sciarada Castoro, an exceptional heavyweight reverse calf suede produced in Tuscany by the renowned Sciarada tannery.
At approximately 2.0-2.2mm, it is a substantial material with a pronounced natural nap and enough structure to give the shoe its form without sacrificing softness. The richness and variation of the suede become an integral part of the design - a material chosen as much for how it will develop through wear as for how it looks when new.
Natural crepe
Underfoot sits 5mm Malaysian latex crepe, produced from natural rubber tapped in the Johor region, where individual rubber trees can continue producing latex for more than 30 years.
The crepe is prepared and cut in Portugal, providing a naturally cushioned foundation and adding another tactile material to the deliberately simple construction of the shoe.
The Bologna method
There is another connection to Bologna hidden within the construction itself.
The Saragozza employs the traditional Bologna construction, also known as Sacchetto, or the bag method. Rather than building the shoe around a conventional rigid insole board, the upper is stitched to a soft base beneath the foot. By removing unnecessary rigid components, the shoe is able to flex more naturally, creating a supple, almost sock-like structure with the relaxed comfort more commonly associated with a sneaker.
A traditional Italian technique, selected not for nostalgia but for what it brings to the finished shoe: lightness, flexibility and comfort.
Made in Portugal
The Saragozza is handcrafted in Northern Portugal in partnership with a family-founded factory whose history stretches back to 1938.
Established by a young local cobbler, the factory is one of the oldest in Felgueiras - a town that has developed into the heart of Portuguese shoemaking and earned an international reputation for its craftsmanship.
It is an environment where generations of knowledge meet contemporary manufacturing, and one that shares our belief that exceptional products begin with exceptional materials and the people who understand how to work with them.
The Saragozza
The story began in Bologna.
A 1993 Left Hand jacket. An experimental fabric. A raw edge that became a distinctive design detail. More than three decades later, that detail finds a new expression in the first Left Hand footwear collaboration.
The name takes us back to Saragozza, Bologna. The construction takes us there again.
The result brings together Left Hand's archive and continuing philosophy of material experimentation with Meanforme's approach to footwear - realised through Italian suede, natural crepe and generations of Portuguese shoemaking expertise.
Past informing present. Material informing design.
The Saragozza.
Left Hand x Meanforme.
Launches 23/08/26 - 20:00 GMT.
Early Access for those signed up to our mailing list - 19:00 GMT.
