AIR HUARACHE IS THE FUTURE OF NIKE
Nike is no doubt the leader in sneakers. Since their inception from the waffle irons of yesteryears past, to the feet of Prefontaine. They have led the way in alethic footwear. What started as a running shoe has transformed and morphed into a shoe behemoth incorporating basketball, football, soccer, rugby, lacrosse, hiking, and almost any activity that involves feet. There is virtually nowhere you can go without seeing an ad for Nike. Whether it’s a billboard, commercial, magazine, or a sporting event the ubiquitous swoosh is ever present.
At this point you may be wondering why the title states huarache is the future of Nike. It’s because the the Nike Air Huarache is the first Nike sleek form fitting running shoe, that eliminated the large Nike swoosh. The sleek design of the shoe is not distracted by the large swoosh on the side. Nikes are some of the most well designed shoes on the planet, even high end designers who are now entering into the sneaker market are using some of Nikes old designs to sell shoes for thousands of dollars. Nike is at the point where they’re so big, they risk over-saturating the market with their logo. When Nike was a fledgling company in the late 70’s the large nike swoosh made absolute sense, it was a perfect way to advertise their brand. Now this is no longer a necessary strategy. There are times when I personally see a pair of new Nikes, and the first thing that comes to mind is,‘those would look even better if that big Nike swoosh wasn’t in the way. The Nike Air Zoom Kobe, The Kyrie, and The Zoom Freak 2 are some examples of well designed shoes where esthetics are thrown off by the large Nike Swoosh. One of the reasons that the Air Jordan became the most popular Nike shoe is because it was one of the first Nike models to ditch the logo, starting with the 2nd version. Jordan’s became a shoe you could wear to non athletic events for athletes and non athletes alike.
The 11’s were a Prom favorite when they were released and can still be seen at weddings today. Designer shoe makers today are realizing the benefits of designing sneakers, that leave out huge logos that detract buyers and seem tacky. Christian Louboutin, Louis Vuitton, Moncler, and Giuseppe Zanotti are some of the designer sneakers priced well above stock Nikes who are receiving a lot of attention in the world of fashion, by trend setters. Although a lot of trend setters such as entertainers like to flex the most expensive item they can find, a major part of the appeal of designer sneakers is their cost is so high it makes their logos rare and exclusive. Nike’s domination of the sneaker market make them so common, that they lose their exclusive factor. Even in exclusive releases, simply because their Swoosh is so recognizable. Even when designer labels use their own logos, it’s usually incorporated into the design of their shoe, in a way that is almost hidden unless you really focus on the shoe.
Nike is well within its rights to keep using large size logos on their releases, but in my opinion, they would elevate their game if they chose to ditch the large logo in favor of small logos on the Tongue and heel, or no logos at all. Some examples of the direction that nike should take, especially on athlete signature shoes. Are the LeBron 18, Vapor Max Plus, Air Max 95. The Nike Sb Shane is an example of a shoe that would look much better if they only placed the Swoosh on the tongue and heel. Its sleek minimalist design would be perfect without the logos on the side. Newcomers to the sneaker world such as Under Armour as well as long time players like Adidas have been gaining market share with their less obtrusive logo designs. Under Armour started out using a large logo, yet they have transition to using a smaller variation of their logo closer to the heel of the shoe.
The Curry 1 and 2 from Under Armour were not well received, despite being worn by the premiere shooter in the NBA. After Under Armour dropped the large side logos on their Curry line sales have gradually increased. Adidas has made efforts to better hide their logo inside the design of their shoes which is much easier to do considering they just use 3 lines, which are easy to integrate. Studies have shown that consumers are less inclined to purchase clothing brands with large overpowering logos. The future of shoe design, seems to be small discretely place logos. Think the traditional pony on Ralph Lauren polo shirt vs. the big pony. Nike designs are iconic no doubt, now they just need to get out of their comfort zone, drop the large swoosh and think about the future.