Air Jordan 1: The history and origin of a revolution!

The beginnings of the Jordan brand

As its name suggests, Jordan's story is closely linked to that of the legendary basketball player: Michael Jordan. In the 80s, Michael Jordan was a rookie player with the Chicago Bulls who was starting to make a name for himself. In this sense, the brands Converse, Adidas and Nike began to catch his eye and ended up making him a sponsorship offer so that he could wear their sneakers during matches. After long negotiations, it was finally with the swoosh brand that Jordan signed for a salary of $500,000 per year, the creation of his clothing brand and 25% commission on each pair sold.

Upon signing the contract, Michael Jordan received a Nike Air Ship stamped “Air Jordan” in the famous red and black “Bred” colorway. Legend has it that after a first match with this pair on his feet, the NBA decided to ban the model, judging the colorway not to conform to the uniform expected of the division's teams. An opportunity for the Nike Marketing team, which then produced an advertising spot featuring the star basketball player with the Air Jordan 1 Bred. The voiceover of this spot tells the consumer that although the NBA has banned the Jordan 1, no one can stop them from wearing it. This legend and the associated marketing operation is a success and makes it a symbol of rebellion popular with young people.

Given the success of the Air Jordan range, the swoosh gradually disappeared from the models to be replaced by a Jordan stamp from 1992, which also marked the release of the Air Jordan 7. In 1997, Jordan officially became a separate brand from Nike, and the Jordan basketball brand was born.

The Jordan 1 as a marker of popular culture

The Jordan 1 has marked different aspects of popular culture throughout its history. One of its markers appeared in 1986 with the release of the Air Jordan II. This release resulted in the loss of popularity of the Air Jordan 1 with a collapse in sales and price. At that time, Air Jordan 1s could be found for the modest sum of $20, a price completely disconnected from the realities of the market in 2022. This reduction in the price of the Jordan 1 allowed the brand to reach a new audience, that of skaters. This high-top, accessible and comfortable sneaker is perfectly suited to the Skateboard community, which did not yet have dedicated models. Jordan formalized this relationship much later with the release in 2019 of a pack of 6 Air Jordans intended for the practice of this urban sport.

Over time, the brand continued to make a deep mark on popular culture, particularly with appearances of the Air Jordan in one of the most popular series of the time: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The release of the Air Jordan V in 1990 coincided with the launch of the series. Will Smith's character professes throughout the series his love of the Air Jordan 5 White Grape, which would make it a success, make it particularly popular with an entire generation and make Jordan an iconic brand of the 90s.

1996 marked the launch of the legendary film Space Jam, a film that featured Michael Jordan playing himself alongside the Looney Tunes characters. Just like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, this film would mark a generation that saw the brand as a model of life to follow.

Unique and unmissable collaborations

The Air Jordan 1 allowed Nike to create a strong independent brand and capitalize on the launch of several derivative models (Air Jordan 2, Air Jordan 3, Air Jordan 4, Air Jordan 5 and many others). The Air Jordan 1 is and will always be for sneaker addicts and collectors the reference model called OG. As a result, many artists and brands have collaborated with Jordan on capsule models. A form of consecration for the actors associated with this model. Discover a selection of must-see collaborations below:

• AIR JORDAN 1 RETRO HIGH UNION LOS ANGELES BLACK TOE : Released in November 2018, the Jordan 1 Union Black Toe is a legendary model for any self-respecting sneaker collector. This collaboration between Jordan and Union LA offers a twist on the OG Bred colorway.

• AIR JORDAN 1 HIGH OG SP FRAGMENT TRAVIS SCOTT : The Nike and Travis Scott collaboration is already one of the most iconic collections of the swoosh brand. For this new collaboration on the Air Jordan 1, the two entities are teaming up with the Fragment label in a Military Blue colorway with the usual reverse Swoosh, the Houston rapper's trademark.

• AIR JORDAN 1 RETRO HIGH OFF-WHITE UNIVERSITY BLUE: Released in May 2018, Off-White and Nike are launching their third collaboration on the Air Jordan 1 model with the University Blue. After the “Chicago” and the “All White”, this collaboration comes in a sky blue colorway stamped Off-White with the classic red zip-tie.

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