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Let's not generalize. I'm sure a lot of sneakerheads (including myself) don't care.
Official Jordan 1.5
- Thread in 'Jordan Brand' Thread starter Started by iriesupreme,
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The Jumpman on 1s aren't that big of a deal. The best pair of 1s I own has a Jumpman tag and on the heel (Vegas 1s >>> everything else except banneds)
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didnt mean to generalize sir, but i used that term because i associate it with folks that are so passionate about details that average folks dont care about or wont notice.
whiplashtw03
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I honestly think there's a method to JB's madness. I don't think they are just blatantly placing the jumpman on the tongues and heels of 1s (or any other retro for that matter) "just for the heck of it." Looking at it from a branding and marketing perspective, I can see JB's logic for doing multiple variations of the same shoe. At the end of the day, it's all about increasing sales through the careful planning of the successive stages of a product's life cycle. By slightly modifying the product (i.e., jumpman on tongue or heel) without sacrificing the "integrity" of the AJ1's original silhouette, JB is able to modify the market (finding new customers and/or increasing the "use" of existing customer base). As a result, the product (AJ1) can be re-positioned in its current market based on strategy - whether it's through the addition of new features (i.e., jumpman instead of NA), re-mastering old ones (i.e, NA remaster series), adding high quality materials (Pinnacle series), or downgrading quality of materials based on economical conditions to reduce overhead (i.e., 2013 quality vs 2015 quality).
Imagine if every two years, they kept releasing the exact same AJ1 Bred with NA on tongue. Would you keep copping the exact same pair year after year til you had 7 pairs of the same shoe? After a consumer cops his two or three pairs, he'd probably be done copping that particular colorway. But since JB releases the AJ1 Bred in different varieties - OG form, jumpman on heel, AJKO, DMP, 1.5, etc - consumers are able to have OPTIONS. From a branding perspective, the fact that sneaker aficionados can say they have 3 out of the 5 versions and are still missing the DMP and 1.5, for example, makes the product that much more appealing and "saleable" throughout the course of its lifecycle.
In sum, Michael Jordan and his team at NIke/JB are geniuses. This is one of the reasons why MJ is a billionaire and is an example why I believe Nike continues to be the leading innovators in the sneaker industry at product marketing and branding strategy. You would think after all these years that MJ has been retired that the Jordan line would be dying and other signature sneakers would have already taken over. Instead, the Air Jordan continues to transcend generations and is still the number one signature sneaker by far.
Imagine if every two years, they kept releasing the exact same AJ1 Bred with NA on tongue. Would you keep copping the exact same pair year after year til you had 7 pairs of the same shoe? After a consumer cops his two or three pairs, he'd probably be done copping that particular colorway. But since JB releases the AJ1 Bred in different varieties - OG form, jumpman on heel, AJKO, DMP, 1.5, etc - consumers are able to have OPTIONS. From a branding perspective, the fact that sneaker aficionados can say they have 3 out of the 5 versions and are still missing the DMP and 1.5, for example, makes the product that much more appealing and "saleable" throughout the course of its lifecycle.
In sum, Michael Jordan and his team at NIke/JB are geniuses. This is one of the reasons why MJ is a billionaire and is an example why I believe Nike continues to be the leading innovators in the sneaker industry at product marketing and branding strategy. You would think after all these years that MJ has been retired that the Jordan line would be dying and other signature sneakers would have already taken over. Instead, the Air Jordan continues to transcend generations and is still the number one signature sneaker by far.
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That sole swap looks amazing
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We all know that if jb released the same exact shoe every couple years, jordan brand sneakerheads will cop everytime just because....that makes jb geniuses only because they know how to capitalize on jordans fans....average joe depending on age is over jordan at this point
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The new gorge 1.5 looks so weird lol. I got the chi 1.5s they are the only ones that make sense to me since he actually played in em
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It makes perfect sense. The whole reason they started replacing NIKE signs with jumpmans was to help establish Jordan as it's own brand and popularize it, which they've obviously done a great job with. You must not have been around very long, because the 2 HAS had a jumpman as well as JORDAN in the back several times. Why would they replace the tongue logo when it's a WINGS logo? They have no reason to. The only time I can think of that they replaced the wings logo from a Jordan 1 was the recent rare air bs with the removable patches. they just wrote air Jordan instead of using the full logo.
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personally, i think when they do retro of OG cw they need to get the shoes right. if the shoe originally had nike air, i don't mind it's replaced with jumpman since they/Jordan brand have separated from nike long time ago. one thing it bothered me was when they decide to spin the jumpman on the 11s, change the detail colors of a OG cw retro like the blk/wht 12 release in 12' etc.
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Why would nike care if they still sell out? They are in business of making money.....all they have to do is look at a couple threads on nt and they would see that jordan fans are knowledgeable but gullible at the same time.
whiplashtw03
Banned
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In my opinion, I have no problem with JB slightly changing certain things on the shoes such as "spinning" the jumpman on newer versions of the 11s or changing the color of the "Jordan" lettering on the heels of the playoff 12s that came out a couple years ago. I'm all for change and I completely support JB giving us a variety of styles and aesthetics when it comes to retros. And I like how they've switched it up recently and are now giving us almost exact re-masters of OG's. I'm curious to see how close to the originals the cement 4s will turn out in Feb.
What I do have a problem with is when JB charges us $150-170+ per pair, and after a few wears the paint on the midsoles begin to chip and crack like the retro 4s of recent memory. Or when every once in a while you'll receive a pair from nike.com that has paint defects or uneven stitching. If I'm going to pay close to $200 a pair, then I expect premium craftsmanship and high quality materials. Back in the early to late 90s when I bought OGs, I'd wear them out on the basketball court and my J's would seemingly get better with age, like fine wine.
What I do have a problem with is when JB charges us $150-170+ per pair, and after a few wears the paint on the midsoles begin to chip and crack like the retro 4s of recent memory. Or when every once in a while you'll receive a pair from nike.com that has paint defects or uneven stitching. If I'm going to pay close to $200 a pair, then I expect premium craftsmanship and high quality materials. Back in the early to late 90s when I bought OGs, I'd wear them out on the basketball court and my J's would seemingly get better with age, like fine wine.
whiplashtw03
Banned
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You're absolutely right. Nike doesn't care, because they already know consumer behavior as it pertains to the Air Jordan signature line. It's no longer a "game" shoe; the Air Jordan numbered series aka AJ game shoe has solely become a lifestyle product. A decade ago, the focus seemed to be on reproducing the most famous colorways in "retro" fashion, with slight tweaks from the originals. Just when we thought JB was running out of ideas, all of a sudden we see special packaging (i.e., holiday AJ11 releases), special packs (i.e., Old Love/New Love, DMP, BMP, Countdown Pack, etc).
Not to outdo themselves, JB went ahead to then retro the shoe boxes to make them look similar to the 90s boxes. Then they come up with a slew of brand new never-before-seen colorways since JB saw that knock off factories in China were producing Jordans in different colors so they thought, "Why don't we do the same thing?" (i.e., Sport Blue 3s, Gamma 11s, Wolf Grey 3s, Powder 3s, etc). Lately, we've been seeing pairs that are made as tributes to anything related to Michael (i.e., Marvin the Martian 7s, Pro Star 5s, Statue 9s). Now, JB has their premium luxury series on fleek with the Pinnacles, not to mention special editions such as the Doernbecher series and other "limited" collabs such as the recent Supreme 5s.
JB's creative team is surely earning their keep. While the Air Jordan shoe has reached new levels of swag, MJ meanwhile is still rockin' super baggy pants wherever he goes as if it's still the 90s. What's next? Self-lacing Air Jordan Mags? We never know what they have up their sleeves. The only given is that the price of these kicks will continue to rise and we will continue to buy. And with the mass proliferation of Air Jordans in the market (in spite of the occasional supply of OG colorways not meeting demand), maybe just maybe JB's aim in the next few years is to flood the market in order to eliminate the re-sellers and grab market share by the neck.
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When did the 2s have a Jumpman on the heel?
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I know the Nu'Retro II's had a Jumpman on the lace covering portion. That's all I can think of off hand.
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back in the day I saw these at the outlet & my ex was like "look, Jordans!"
again, ex.
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Haha. Gotta have standards!
I will admit though when I was in middle school I owned a pair. They were fairly comfortable if I remeber right. But again, middle school.
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Nu Retro 2s were dope.
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This release epitomizes JB's brilliance of not giving the consumer exactly what they want. JB knows there is pent up demand for the bred 1. They know it would sell out today upon release. So, instead of selling it to consumers now, they tempt with the low and with the 1.5. These same people will want to buy a nearly identical shoe when it drops in a year or two. And so the cycle continues.
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This is nothing really new to Nike/Jordan. These shoes are basically like any other "diffusion" line of any high fashion designer. These are the styles that are similair but not part of the flagship brand/models. It dilutes the brand a bit, but doesn't diminish the exclusivity of the flagship model. The benefit is that people who really enjoy the Bred 1 style/color can have a cheaper and more available option and it keeps the Bred/AJ1-mystique alive and well. Can't fault them (although it is a money grab) for allowing people who are normally unable to get Bred 1's to get a small taste of it in the 1.5's and lows. It's actually refreshing to see people scoop up these pairs and not fear wearing them because they might de-value the shoe or re-sellers taking pairs out of people's hands. The fact that they are actually comfortable too just makes it better.
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I agree. I liked nu retro 2s. If they came back out though they would be trash because they would look all thin and cheap.
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picked up the soar blue for $109.99 shipped from ebay. if anyone want the link let me know. they still have 8.5, 9.5, 10, and 12 left.
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babyjs23
Staff member
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That's a great price!
RUVILLA has them listed on sale at $119.98.
https://www.ruvilla.com/jordan/men/footwear/jordan-air-jordan-1pt5-white-black-soar.html
View media item 1785891
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Wait so were all retro 2s like this before 2014 or were these the only ones? I don't recall 2004 Chi 2s having a Jumpman...
Edit: wait a min, those are Doernbecher 2s which are an exception, esp because that line takes a lot of creative liberties (i.e. DB IVs having a Superman symbol)
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