Photo: STORY MFG. / ASICS
A hiking-blanket check on a trail sole — 1990s ASICS hiking DNA under a London slow-fashion overlay, at $180.
Verdict
| What it is | ASICS × Story mfg. GEL-TRANSCEND FJ, Dark Brown (1203B194-200) — a new ASICS model built from its 1990s hiking archive on GEL-FujiTrabuco 7 trail tooling, with Story mfg.'s blanket check |
| Price | $180 at ASICS US; listed at storymfg.com at £180 UK — checked Wed Nov 11, 2026 |
| Availability | Released at storymfg.com on Nov 11; ASICS.com and stockists follow Nov 20 (per build record) |
| The angle | The FJ is a tooling credit: archive hiking uppers — Transcend, GEL-Odyssey, GEL-Radius — on a jagged, lugged FujiTrabuco outsole |
| Verdict | A trail tool wearing a blanket check, and the tooling underneath is real. |
What it is
ASICS built the GEL-TRANSCEND FJ new this autumn from its own 1990s hiking archive — the Transcend series, the GEL-Odyssey and the GEL-Radius above — and put it on GEL-FujiTrabuco 7 trail tooling below: a jagged, lugged ASICSGRIP outsole. The FJ in the name is that FujiTrabuco tooling credit.
Story mfg., the London slow-fashion label founded in 2013 by Saeed and Katy Al-Rubeyi, adds its hiking-blanket check on recycled synthetic-leather overlays, carried across the toe, stripes, heel counter and lace panel over tonal brown mesh. The ASICS logo is perforated into the toe, a small silver Story mfg. script sits at the lateral heel, and lace beads come in the box. Dark Brown is the featured colourway, in unisex sizing; a Black colourway (1203B194-001) also exists. It is the labels' second collaboration, after the GEL-Venture 6 of spring 2025.
Why it matters
Archive revivals usually stop at the upper. This one pairs the archive story with current trail hardware — the outsole is the working part, and it comes from ASICS' own mountain line rather than a fashion last. Story mfg.'s contribution is equally specific: a check drawn from vintage hiking blankets, in the label's natural-dye, craft-production idiom, laid over a breathable mesh trail shoe. Two archives, one shoe, neither pretending.
Specs
| Brand | ASICS × Story mfg. |
| Model | GEL-TRANSCEND FJ — Dark Brown / Dark Brown, style 1203B194-200 |
| Upper | Breathable mesh with recycled synthetic-leather overlays carrying the blanket check (per build record) |
| Outsole | GEL-FujiTrabuco 7 tooling, jagged lugged ASICSGRIP rubber (per build record) |
| Details | Perforated toe logo, silver heel script, tongue and insole branding, lace beads included |
| Sizing | Unisex |
| Collection | Story mfg. SS27 "Trees Are Poems" |
What to check before buying
- Two prices, two stores. $180 is ASICS US; storymfg.com lists the shoe at £180 UK. They are different storefronts, not a conversion error.
- The release is staggered. storymfg.com first (Nov 11), ASICS.com and stockists from Nov 20 — if your size is gone at one, the other window may still open.
- The check is on overlays. The blanket pattern lives on the recycled synthetic-leather panels over mesh — expect the mesh, not the check, to do the breathing.
- Trail tooling, street intent. The FujiTrabuco lugs are genuine trail hardware; on wet pavement that is grip, on long road miles it is more lug than you need.
Price record
| Price | $180 at ASICS US; £180 at storymfg.com (UK) |
| Source | ASICS US listing and storymfg.com, checked Wed Nov 11, 2026 |
| Featured on our Instagram | Wed Nov 11, 2026 — Spotted EXTRA (approved Nov 9; does not consume a daily lane) |
Want one?
- In the shop: browse current stock — one-off pieces, and they turn over fast.
- Hunting one? Join the Want List — tell us the maker and the budget; pieces like this surface in our trawl most weeks.
- This one: at the source — See it at Story mfg.. Not our listing. See Disclosure.
Related picks
- 8000Kicks Explorer V2 — weatherproof, woven from hemp, at $129
- Lems Boulder Boot Grip Waterproof — Dakota — a hiking boot shaped like a foot, at $200
- Xero Mesa Summit WP — Black — a trail shoe that keeps the water out, at $144.99
Spotted, not sold by us — this piece lives at the makers' own stores. Prices are a snapshot from when we spotted it. Disclosure
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Shop the pick
ASICS × Story mfg. GEL-TRANSCEND FJ — Dark Brown
$180 at ASICS US; listed today at storymfg.com (£180 UK), checked Wed Nov 11, 2026
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