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Monday, April 20, 2009

History of Nike Dunk


The Nike Dunk line is one of the vintage lines of shoes developed by Nike. The history of the Nike Dunk started in 1985 when Nike approached several college basketball teams for exclusive rights to gearing their teams in shoes. The benefit for the college was that their shoes matched their uniforms. These nine teams, and their nine distinctive color patterns, formed the foundation that would return in 1998 with the reintroduction of the classic Nike Dunk.

In order to live true to the classic Nike Dunk, Nike went out of their way to develop a manufacturing process that would make the shoes look like they had been waiting for twenty years before coming out of the box. This gives the modern Nike Dunk shoes a vintage feel while still maintaining the quality of new, unused parts. At first, the Nike Dunk line was released as it was back in 1985, with the same nine color sets. However, that quickly changed as Nike began releasing new versions of the Dunk. Due to the high popularity on the street and for skateboarders, Nike released a version of the Nike Dunk for skaters, dubbed the Nike SB Dunk. Adhering to the needs of skaters, the Nike SB Dunk included a puffy tongue and Zoom Air insole to provide the extra support needed by skaters.

When the fad of Nike Dunk grew, Nike took advantage of it and turned the Dunk into a collector's item. By making a wide variety of limited edition shoes, Nike guaranteed its place among collections for the years to come. Now, limited edition shoes, such as the 'What the Dunk?' line, sell for thousands of dollars at auction. Many of these limited edition shoes are never worn, allowing their legacy to continue on.

The Nike Dunk limited edition program has not been without fault, however. There have been instances of riots breaking out in stores and centers that receive shipments of the limited edition Nike Dunk shoes. One such incident occurred in New York, when over one hundred people waited in line and only twenty shoes were released to the store. This riot only highlighted the high demand for the shoes. That particular shoe, the Nike Dunk pigeons. There were only 202 of these shoes made, and they were only released in New York City.

If you are interested in collecting Nike Dunk shoes, it is not too late to get in on the latest trends. Nike releases several Dunk shoes each season, allowing new collectors to join in on the fad and enjoy the legacy of the Dunk.

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