Back in like 2004 or so, I discovered Fulton Street and the Albee Square Mall in Brooklyn. I was a few years late, but when I found it I was in sneaker heaven.
There was sneaker shop after sneaker shop after sneaker shop and each and every shop had different shoes than the last. I remember there was this one shop that was always poppin...several men in turbans behind the counter and all of them were super serious. No smiles. Ever. I don’t recall the shop having a name (on display), but they did have two things: cologne and sneakers. And they had like ALL of the sneakers we all heard about but had never seen in person.
At this shop - it was the first time I ever saw the Espo Air Force II’s - a mostly clear shoe...I remember looking at them and the guy was looking at me and I muttered ‘how much?’ I asked NOT because I wanted them, but because I just thought they looked like the best investment in the shop. Without even blinking he responded: “$500”. I felt like the guy just smacked me across the face. I had no idea what to say. In 2004, $500 was an impossibly ridiculous amount of money for me to even consider for a shoe...let alone a SEE THROUGH shoe. I thanked him, went across the street to Hyperactive and promptly bought a pair of Brooklyn AF1’s for $74.99.
I remember seeing the Espo’s shortly after and they were already starting to yellow. I remember thinking ‘thank god I didn’t invest in those.’
The see-through shoe thing gained a bit of ground shortly after...with the Air Force 1 ‘Invisible Woman’. And then like a bunch of see through AF1 fakes, AJVII fakes, and Bapes. Every pair I saw on foot...underwhelming. And some even fogged up. And no pair of socks was dope enough to wear with see-through shoes back then. It was just colors. @stancesocks wasn’t around back then.
I find it interesting that one of the most coveted AM1’s of all time - the Clot KODs - have a see-through toebox. I think this shoe would look AMAZING with a red toebox or a cream toebox or...I dunno...anything that’s NOT clear. This shoe as-is does absolutely nothing for me. Nothing. At. All.
Why do you think Nike is sending THIS shoe to all of the influencers?