By Jon Emont | Photographs by Qilai Shen for WSJ

SHANGHAI -- Streetwear designer Zhang Quan has made sneakers with tiger tails for Adidas, clogs covered in faux blue bunny fur for Crocs and Casio watches engraved with the logo of his brand, Melting Sadness.

In China, these special collaborations fly off the shelves.

American and European retailers looking to sell more shoes and designer bags are increasingly turning to artists like Zhang to give their offerings a Chinese makeover as more local consumers want to buy products with a homegrown feel.

Sitting on a stool in his artist studio in a converted industrial space in Shanghai, Zhang, 36, said that local designers can help foreign brands reach Chinese consumers who want to see their culture reflected in the products they buy. "China's voice will become more Chinese," said Zhang, wearing a plain black T-shirt and baseball cap from luxury Los Angeles brand Gallery Dept., with bracelets on both wrists.

Slouched across from Zhang, who is known for his whimsical designs incorporating animal characters, was a teddy bear in a Gap shirt emblazoned with one of his characteristic bunny images, the product of a collaboration this year with the San Francisco clothing brand. Stashed in the corner of his studio was another recent creation, a "Year of the Snake" sneaker for Vans, with pearl accents dotted along the side resembling the snake from a classic 1990s game.

For years, China was a reliable and important cash cow for global retailers. But sales have been hurt by increased competition from local Chinese brands and by consumers cutting back spending over concerns about slowing economic growth. Amid flagging sales, Nike tapped Chinese designers to help with runway looks. Clothing behemoth Zara collaborated with local fashion designers and a Shanghai porcelain brand.

Zhang has been a prime beneficiary of retailers' hunt for buzzy Chinese collaborators.

The son of a kindergarten teacher mother and a design professor father, Zhang was raised in Nanjing, a bustling city a few hours west of Shanghai. Like many middle-class millennial Chinese, Zhang grew up watching the NBA and listening to hip-hop. He developed a fascination with basketball sneakers.

At Nanjing University of the Arts, he was inspired by foreign artists who blurred the lines between commercial and fine art such as Brian Donnelly, the American artist who goes by KAWS, known for sculptures of a Mickey Mouse-like character and collaborations with the likes of Uniqlo.

Like his artistic idols, Zhang saw no contradiction between trying to succeed artistically and commercially. After graduating, Zhang used money he earned from selling sculptures to set up two shops in Nanjing serving "intestine noodles" -- a local delicacy served in broth with a dash of pig intestines. The twist was that customers also received "intestine currency" that they could collect and trade for random knickknacks ordered online by Zhang, such as knives, seasoning packets, water guns and combs, wrapped in branded packaging.

The noodle shops became a minor sensation, earning him press and the attention of fellow artists.

In 2016, Zhang co-founded a streetwear brand, Melting Sadness, which he saw as a continuation of his effort to make art accessible to the masses, this time through clothing rather than pig intestines. The brand incorporated characters Zhang had created during college, in particular Karoro, a boy wearing a blue bunny costume, who is on a quest to find carrots after never getting any when he was younger.

A friend introduced Zhang to Adidas brand representatives, who invited him to design a window display featuring Karoro for one of its flagship stores in Shanghai. In 2019, the German shoe brand reached out to him to create a version of Adidas sneakers reflecting his "unique perspective as a Chinese artist," Zhang said. They sold Adidas sneakers with patterns like a giraffe's hide, and yellow-and-black ones resembling a bee. They offered a limited release of orange-colored "carrot" sneakers, with the shoe's tongue crafted to look like green leaves.

Timed with the sneaker launch was the unveiling of a 20-foot sculpture of Zhang's Karoro character hunched in front of one of Shanghai's hippest malls. Small statues of other Melting Sadness characters were put up at an Adidas-branded outdoor event, where guests were served carrot juice, carrot ice cream and carrot cocktails.

"It was a dream come true," said Zhang.

Chinese actress and cover girl Song Yanfei posted photos of herself wearing the limited-release carrot sneakers, and fans quickly filled the comments section with questions about where to get the shoes. "The not-for-sale carrot edition. It broke my heart," one person wrote. In 2021, the carrot shoes had a wider release in kids' sizes.

The collaboration was a bright spot during a difficult period for Adidas in China, when western brands became targets of nationalist backlash for expressing concerns about labor rights in the country's far western Xinjiang region.

As Western brands tried to connect with Chinese consumers who were drifting toward local labels, Zhang became a hot commodity . By 2023, he was making Karoro-emblazoned hoodies with American sportswear brand Champion and watches for Casio's G-Shock brand decorated with carrot motifs. Zhang and the brands declined to share sales figures.

Zhang is unapologetic about his career's commercial direction: "Clothes are the most affordable piece of art that people can buy."

Jing Wen, an office worker from Guangdong province in her late 30s, said she learned about Melting Sadness a few years ago when the Adidas collaboration was released, and was intrigued by the zaniness and bright colors. She bought pale-blue Adidas Karoro-themed sneakers, and later bought a Melting Sadness G-Shock watch and a bright blue Karoro-themed Champion backpack. The brand "feels like a fairy tale world for adults," Jing said.

Crocs secured Zhang for a tie-up in 2022, when the American maker of hole-filled clogs was working with local designers to grow rapidly in China, where it had previously struggled. Zhang wanted to try something a little unexpected for a brand named for a scaly reptile.

"We wanted to break through how people normally think of Crocs," Zhang said. "We lined the shoe with fur, like we would normally make a stuffed toy bunny." Young people snapped up the neon blue furry Crocs, a homage to his Karoro character, released to coincide with the "Year of the Rabbit."

"Right time, right brand," said Anne Mehlman, Crocs' brand president. "It was so relevant for the Chinese consumer."

Even Italian haute couture brand Valentino was intrigued, putting up large displays of Karoro peeking out of giant versions of its bags and giving a peace sign.

Zhang keeps a tally of the more than 300 Chinese celebrities and online influencers who have worn Melting Sadness outfits. His deep social network, and 130,000 followers on Chinese social-media app Weibo, raise the chances that a collaboration with him will go viral.

This year, Gap sold nautical-striped T-shirts with Karoro's image and fishermen's hats with a blue bunny logo. A Gap spokesman said the collaboration sold well and blended "character art, streetwear, and bold graphics" in a way that speaks to younger audiences.

Melting Sadness also has its own offerings, selling $40 Karoro T-shirts and $70 sweatshirts with bunny motifs online, and at nearly a dozen boutique stores around China.

His most famous character is always seeking carrots, but Zhang says he is maybe just looking for success.

--Zhao Yueling contributed to this article.

Write to Jon Emont at jonathan.emont@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 05, 2025 22:00 ET (02:00 GMT)

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