Air Jordan 1 High "True Blue" Nods to a Classic Retro in This Week's Best Footwear Drops
Timberland’s Stüssy Boot collab, along with the Air Jordan 5 “Mars for Her” and more are also slated to release.
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To ensure that sneaker aficionados don’t experience any malaise in the middle of this first month of 2023, popular sportswear brands have prepared a substantial amount of heat for this new winter week. Whether you’re looking to pick up a new retro from Jordan Brand, a new lifestyle collaboration from Nike or a weatherproof team-up from Timberland, they’ve all got you covered. But before we dive into these launches, let’s travel back in time and summarize the biggest footwear news from last week.
Starting off with exclusives, Hypebeast had the pleasure of catching up with streetwear veteran Benny Gold for Sole Mates to chat about creating the iconic HUF x Nike Air Force 1 Low “Hufquake” collaboration. We caught a whirlwind of news from the Swoosh on the news front. Jennifer Ford — founder of Premium Goods — officially announced her jewelry-inspired Nike Air Force 1 initiative, rumors of a Paris-exclusive Off-White™ x Nike Air Force 1 Low started to float around and a timely Air Max Scorpion with protective gaiters was unveiled. Jordan Brand stirred up more excitement as detailed shots of the UNION x Air Jordan 1 KO Low emerged along with more photos of the highly-anticipated Air Jordan 3 “White Cement Reimagined” and the Air Jordan 1 High “Washed Black.”
Turning our attention to the Three Stripes team now, we witnessed adidas flex some of its upcoming bangers. Bad Bunny is putting his Forum Buckle Low line to rest and gearing up to launch his Campus collab, images of an unreleased adidas Yeezy 450 Slide in yellow popped up and the German sportswear kicked off his case with Thom Browne over its Three Stripes trademark.
Other items that stuck out include the official reveal of the Bricks & Wood x New Balance 9060 collab, Dior and Denim Tears’ Shearling Oblique Mules, TOMBOGO’s glow-in-the-dark Saucony Butterfly team-up and Awake NY ‘s Vans Old Skool capsule.
Now that you’re all caught up, scroll further down to peep the top 10 sneaker drops of the week. And when you’re done there, pop over to the HBX online store to check out new footwear styles.
Rick Owens DRKSHDW x Converse TURBODRK and TURBOWPN
Converse
Converse
Release Date: January 10
Release Price: $170 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: Rick Owens DRKSHDW and Converse are colluding once more this week to update their ongoing TURBODRK and TURBOWPN silhouettes. The TURBODRK Chuck 70 appears in an eye-catching zebra-inspired jacquard design with a fluffy shearling-like fabric while TURBOWPN is fashioned with a two-tone design in the collaboration’s signature black and beige hues.
New Balance 990v2 “Purple/Yellow”
Uptodate.tokyo
Uptodate.tokyo
Uptodate.tokyo
Release Date: January 12
Release Price: $200 USD
Where to Buy: New Balance
Why You Should Cop: The start of a new year only meant that Teddy Santis was going to keep the momentum alive with his Made in USA footwear line. One of the brand’s creative director’s next offerings is a bold New Balance 990v2 colorway that comes packaged with forefoot and heel components smothered in a bright pink while the quarters are designed in a lush purple hue. Sitting adjacent to these are pops of yellow that rest on the N logos as well as the interior lining which spruces up the kicks with a touch of Lakers-esque flair.
ADER error x Converse Chuck 70 Hi
Converse
Converse
Converse
Release Date: January 10
Release Price: $115 USD
Where to Buy: Converse
Why You Should Cop: In addition to teaming up with Rick Owens this week, Converse is also aligning with South Korean entity ADER error to push out a special Chuck 70 collaboration. The shoe’s classical shape and materials are kept intact, but the collective puts its own twist on it by attaching fragments of raw-edged, blue canvas across the collars and next to the throat. Other notable touches include the intentional scuff marks across the toe caps and midsoles along with the words “The New Not New” written in script font along the toe tips.
Timberland x Stüssy GORE-TEX Boots
Stüssy
Stüssy
Stüssy
Stüssy
Release Date: January 13
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Stüssy
Why You Should Cop: With the winter weather temperatures starting to settle in, it’s certainly a good call to keep protective footwear on deck. And thankfully Timberland x Stüssy are allowing you to do that in a fashionable sense as the two are reuniting for the first time since 2014 to craft a small capsule of hiking boots. Coming in black and beige colorways, both pairs are lined with GORE-TEX to keep your feet dry in wetter conditions and styled metallic silver lace hooks. Stüssy branding is fittingly positioned on the tongues in tonal fashion as well as the eyelets closest to the collars where the streetwear label’s “SS” logo sits.
Nike LeBron 20 “Olive Suede”
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: January 13
Release Price: $210 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: LeBron James has been on a tear lately gunning to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA scoring record, and he’s been doing it all in his latest Nike LeBron 20. And this week, his signature kicks are trotting into the spotlight once again to be highlighted in a brand new “Olive Suede” colorway. The shade in its nickname does most of the heavy lifting and covers a majority of the base, while the double-stacked Swooshes are styled in beige and gray to complete its militaristic motif.
Nike Air Max 97 “Gold Bullet”
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: January 13 (Europe only)
Release Price: $185 USD
Where to Buy: Asphalt Gold
Why You Should Cop: Since the Nike Air Max 97 “Silver Bullet” came back towards the tail end of 2022, it’s only right that the Swoosh give its “Gold Bullet” counterpart a reissue. This week, the shimmery kicks are making their way back to the shelves for its fans over in Europe. Everything from the gilded uppers to the bold red Nike branding is retained, so if you missed out in 2017, this is your chance to cop. A stateside release will be held at a later date.
Pawnshop Skate Co. x Nike SB Dunk High
Pawnshop Skate Co./Nike
Pawnshop Skate Co./Nike
Pawnshop Skate Co./Nike
Pawnshop Skate Co./Nike
Release Date: January 14
Release Price: TBC
Where to Buy: Pawnshop Skate Co.
Why You Should Cop: A plethora of collaborations are expected to get launched from the Nike SB team in 2023, and the next to get ticked off its list is the Pawnshop Skate Co x Nike SB Dunk High. Inspired by work boots, the lifestyle sneakers are pieced together with a stark black premium leather. The golden accents are what really set this pair off as they touch up the wings on the collars, exposed stitchings that border the Swooshes and the Pawnshop hits that are located on both sides of the tongues and the right shoe’s footbed.
Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG “True Blue”
Ansel Store
Ansel Store
Release Date: January 14
Release Price: $180 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS and Ansel Store
Why You Should Cop: It’s a common move for Jordan Brand to borrow palettes from classic retro offerings and slap them onto new offerings. The Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG “True Blue” is an example of this as it adopts the main set of colors that are seen on the Tinker Hatfield-designed Air Jordan 3 “True Blue.” The kicks nod to one of the original AJ3 installments by distributing its titular shade to the Swooshes, laces, forefoot overlays and wings logos while white panels can be seen on the toe boxes, collars and quarters. There’s no cement patterns here but its gray backdrops are alluded to via the ankle flaps, lower heels and the outsoles.
Air Jordan 5 “Mars for Her”
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: January 14
Release Price: $200 USD
Where to Buy: SNKRS
Why You Should Cop: A plethora of Air Jordan 5 colorways are on deck to drop off over the course of 2023, one being this otherworldly “Mars for Her” option. Once this iteration surfaced, many made comparisons to the silhouette’s “Raging Bull” rendition given that its uppers are dressed with a bold red suede. However, the little details such as the gradient midsole spikes and orange-tinted mid-foot netting that allows it to stand on its own.
adidas ULTRA 4DFWD “Wonder Taupe”
Nike
Nike
Nike
Release Date: January 15
Release Price: $220 USD
Where to Buy: adidas
Why You Should Cop: The debut of the adidas ULTRA 4DFWD was overshadowed by YEEZY drama and other major brand collaborations with the likes of Pharrell and Bad Bunny, but it’s ready to get more exposure this year by releasing in new colorways. The next installment to arrive is the “Wonder Taupe” version which makes use of its nominal shade to drown the ventilated toe boxes, side panels, sock-like collars and tongues. Branded heel cups contrast with a hint of beige while the cage stripes are formed with “Night Metallic” finishes. Down below, the latticed 4D midsoles are done up with a glossy black paint job.
