Gear
MCKL · Jeremy Mickel · 2025
Originally commissioned by Adidas and one of the first variable fonts adopted at enterprise scale, this 216-style system spans eight widths and nine weights with upright, slanted and backslanted cuts built around sharp octagonal forms.
About
Designed by Jeremy Mickel and published in 2025 after evolving from a 2018 Adidas commission, the family now runs from XXNarrow to XXXWide across nine weights from XXLight to Ultra, each available in roman, slant and backslant. The octagonal construction gives every width a consistent mechanical tension, while the variable font enables smooth interpolation across all axes for space-filling display work. A full lowercase was added during development alongside refined proportions and an extended glyph set with multiple stylistic alternates.
Classification
Sharp octagonal letterforms with an extreme range of widths and weights, plus slanted and backslanted variants, place this firmly in the display category. Its origins as an Adidas commission and its aggressive, sport-inflected geometry align it with geometric display rather than any text-oriented classification.