This Week In Sneaks

Raw. Uncut. Uncensored.

If you ever wondered what people inside the loops of the sneaker industry are saying about upcoming kicks, this feature is for you. Publishing each week, we are putting together a weekly wrap up where a panel of our industry friends chime in to give their two cents about what they think about the news we reported on the past week. Without much creative input, we quickly decided “This Week In Sneaks” should do.

For the debut edition we have called upon three people – two you may be familiar with and one who we can’t reveal. The man of mystery is a writer for a fashion publication and due to his position at his job and the fact that he has to act friendly with everyone face to face, he didn’t feel comfortable being honest at the same time. We’ll just call him “I.E.”
We also called upon someone who is a sneaker collector, customizer, and inovator. Chef is the genius behind The Decreaser – the only wearable shoe insert to prevent creasing.

Lastly, we called on none other than our good friend Ronnie Fieg who you can find at the flagship store of David Z. David Z has been running the show in Manhattan for 25 years and is respected as one of the best places to get a pair of kicks in the city. Oh yeah, this is all done without a Nike or?? Air Jordans account either. Ronnie is a long time collector with more kicks in his bedroom than notches in Ron Jeremy’s bed post.

I.E.:

I could really go either way on these. Kinda like Anne Heche. The 10 silhouette is a staple of the Jordan line, but I think the all-black leather joints that dropped a few years ago are tougher than these. I think people with those may pass on these. They???re not a sure thing, more like a game-time decision.

Chef:

Another pack? Oooo goodie, let’s celebrate the math skills of the youth by illustrating the numerous ways to arrive at the sum of the every holy number 23 and watch them go broke in the meantime! Sorry but with the flood of Jordans over the past year (feels like forever) I’m just not excited by the pack or the shoe. the materials look dope, color is nice, shoe itself is one of the hotter retroes, but there are few Jordans right now that haven’t been retroed to death.
-pass

Ronnie:

I am a huge fan of the Jordan X???s. If you are, are you for the right reasons? The biggest problem I have with Jordan brand is simply the fact that kids these days can???t possibly know what Michael Jordan meant to me and other OG???s. Back in 94 (5th grade) while Jordan was stabbing my Knicks in the heart with a machete, I was still selling my marvel cards (series 2 including holograms) so I could buy two pair of fresh shadows. Fast forward 13 years??? the biggest question I find myself asking is will Jordan Brand match the quality of the shadows that dropped in 94? As we all know, Jordan Brand has been slacking with materials and high quality leathers that we all expect from JB and this will be a test for them. The rich Grey nubuck used in 94 had a real nice feel to it so step it up JB.

I.E.:

Trainer SBs in O.G Jordan color-ups? No brainer right off the bat. The fact that they???ve got Supreme???s stamp of swagger makes them that much more of a get. The value of Supreme collabo-sneakers always outweigh the aesthetic, even when they???re fire. Whether you???re into flipping them, or you???re rocking them, owning sneakers that triple in value shortly after they???re released is always good thing.

Chef:

dope, lovin the sneaker itself. the simple color placement and focus on contrast makes them an easy staple of basic dress. “thank u nike for dismissing the 80’s crazed colors and returning to basics” is what i think when looking at this primary color pallete. and to have supreme bless the sole in ice, well my year wouldn’t be complete without a Supreme gem to beast after!

Ronnie:

Supreme. It???s either love them or hate them. So let me start by saying I give respect and credit when it???s due. So after 13 years of business, countless collaborations and building a serious cult following I???d say credit and respect are long overdue. With all the bullshit and politics aside these trainers are hot. I???m an SB head so even after their flopping delta force collab, seeing Supreme collaborate on a trainer instead of best selling styles the dunk low and blazer mid is very interesting. Using solid colors for the uppers and playing around with the netting and materials was the right move. Side note – tents are on sale at Paragon, good luck.

I.E.:

I can see these hitting Flight Club shelves and going for grip. It???s great that Nike???s raising money for the sick. I like the AM95s more than the IIs. If I got these, I???d save them for the 4th of July BBQ and wear them with my Old Navy American Flag tee. Sidenote: That???s the only day it???s acceptable to wear an Old Navy Shirt.

Chef:

now this is how u retro a jordan in true colorful fashion. hope thats some laser etching i see smartly mixed with some lux materials. as long as nike follows up this dope design with quality materials, i can see this jordan being more sought after than most of those “add up to 23 and go broke packs”. too bad these won’t be in stores. dope shoe, dope design, dope charity!
-cop

ok, its not that i dont love the am 95, its that i just don’t love the US flag THAT much (looks over shoulder for feds in bushes). I mean the lasering is hot, I guess. I dunno, if someone gave em to me I might rock em with an Uncle Sam costume on Halloween. sings “I’m a yankee doodle dandy………”
-pass

Ronnie:

Any shoe made for charity is a shoe worth making. This actually justifies putting out the ugliest Jordan II ever along with a style that no longer gets any love or respect from OG???s, the Air Max 95. After the original 95???s retroed for the millionth time I knew it would be impossible for the style to make a successful comeback. None of that matters cause I???ll be buying both but Nike needs to give charity packs doper kicks to raise money.

I.E.:

The whole stop-snitching thing has gotten out of control. Now we have the year of the ???rat??? sneakers? C???mon I mean the red nubuck is dope, personally I would???ve kept it all red, and not done that cheesy design on the plastic overlay and on the accent. One-toned shoes are going to be big in the upcoming months. Still not sure if I would buy shoes that promote telling on your friends though. Oh wait, they???re talking about the Chinese New Year? Nevermind.

Chef:

put it this way, it’s good that I was with Matt (Nice Kicks) when I saw these and at the time it was all about making friends with the peeps workin the Reebok booth, cuz I woulda been outta there with some new pumps on my feet and some old, decreased one piece forces sitting where those rats once slumbered. From a dope shoe, to the luxury materials, beautiful accents, attention to detail, smart color placement, and GUM SOLE this shoe has it all. pics just dont do it justice!
-copped x 10

Ronnie:

I had a chance to sit down with the Reebok sales team last week and I heard some positive things. The future looks bright for Reebok which I believe will have a successful 2008. I like what they’re doing with the pump and even though they wouldn’t help me dunk back in the day, they’re still one of my all time favorites. I haven’t seen these in person but from what Matt tells me they’re very detailed. I’m a sucker for good leathers and satin linings so put these in the win column.

I.E.:

Really are these respectable in any hood? I mean gaming-geeks will like you, but there aren???t a lot of hot chicks who spend their Friday nights playing 8-bit,(although sometimes it???s the nerdy ones you gotta watch out for). It???s a good concept I guess, just not executed well at all. Should???ve done the color-way of the 8 bit, with a small Nintendo logo, all those cheesy graphics just add insult to injury.

Chef:

There are 1,000,000 ways to overkill this shoe, thankfully Run Athletics did none of them! The shoe is clean, has dope imagery that connects the collabo seamlessly and uses clean colors you just CAN’T lose with. I mean who can’t work with a black, red, and white sneaker? Dope, I may have to bug the St. Fleur twins for a pair!
-cop

Ronnie:

Are designers running out of ideas? It certainly seems like it looking at this project. If you???re a company like Run Athletics, you need to step away from gimmicks and try to build an identity. I have faith in the Pastry Line for women but in a flooded men???s market it???s going to be tough unless Run Athletics shows me something more evolved and clean cut. I grew up directly across the street from Rev. Run in Jamaica Queens and I used to bust that ass (editor’s note: AYO!) in b-ball all day, but that???s my dude and I???d like to see Run Athletics make it. I heard Clark is spinning at the party next week, I???m down.