{"id":2078,"date":"2020-06-12T19:12:48","date_gmt":"2020-06-12T11:12:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novelship.com\/news\/?p=2078"},"modified":"2020-08-26T18:00:07","modified_gmt":"2020-08-26T10:00:07","slug":"why-nike-dunk-lows-will-never-die","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novelship.com\/news\/why-nike-dunk-lows-will-never-die\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Nike SB Dunks Will Never Die"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

With the high popularity of skateboarding in the 90s, Nike looked to dip their toes in the market. In an attempt to get a piece of the skateboarding pie and compete against established brands like DC and Vans, Nike began to manufacture their own skateboarding footwear line in 1997.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

A Brief History of Nike SB<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Known as nothing more than an athletic basketball sneaker brand, Nike failed to take off initially in the first few years since its launch. The shoes were nothing more than extensions of their basketball shoes, which had little appeal to skateboarders. With big hopes to penetrate the market, Nike shifted its strategy and began to focus on a new division solely aimed for skateboarders. Out of this, the Nike SB division was established and with it, the SB Dunk<\/a><\/strong> Low emerged.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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As 2002 marked the beginning of the Nike SB division, the brand would start off the 2000s with a bang, as it broke convention and tackled marketing through one creative collaboration after another. Released in a clean, minimalistic designed half orange box during what would be called the ‘Orange Box Era’ (March-December 2002), the brand’s initial offerings cemented themselves in sneaker history.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Image via Nike<\/p><\/div>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

To penetrate and receive acknowledgment in the skateboard community, Nike SB collaborated with many legendary skateboarders from Danny Supa<\/a>, his team Zoo Yorks<\/a>, and Reese Forbes<\/a>. Giving them their own signature colourway, which they also helped design, Nike SB steadily grew in popularity, even collaborating with Supreme.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The Spectrum of Coloured Boxes<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

One of the reasons for Nike SBs popularity was the finer details displayed throughout the years. Beyond the shoe itself, the brand distinguished itself from many others through their use of variation in colour for both their sneakers and the accompanying box.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

As more SB Dunks began to be sold through the market for high resell prices, Nike noticed that the box itself served as an important part of the sneaker. This was where most people placed and preserved their cherished inventory after all. In order to differentiate\u00a0their skate shoes from general release Dunks, Nike SB seized the opportunity of this reality and started to make special coloured boxes, which would encapsulate the hot releases of that ‘era.’<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Image via Nike<\/p><\/div>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

From as far back as 1972, sneakers had always been released in white or blue boxes. There was very little variation in the boxes, which is what made each Nike SB era so memorable to the consumer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Just like skateboarding, everything (back in the day) including our\u00a0box\u00a0color and design strategy was done on instinct, and it was\u00a0always\u00a0evolving. There was no specific strategy in place around \u2018Box Color Eras\u2019 \u2013 it was really the community and beyond who started and propelled the concept. That was the beauty of Nike SB back then, we really \u2018JUST DID IT.\u2019<\/p>\r\nJames Arizumi (former Nike SB Senior Footwear Designer) <\/cite><\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n