Union x Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG NRG Varsity Red

When Jordan Brand’s designers heard Union owner Chris Gibbs’s idea for a vintage-styled Air Jordan footwear and apparel capsule, they were sold. They just had one question — what year?

“We’re referencing an era, late ’80s early ’90s,” explains Gibbs, an industry veteran who grew up during that era and understands that streetwear is at its best when it captures a vibe and is unencumbered by the strict technicalities of history.

Gibbs frequents Los Angeles-area flea markets and vintage stores and is thus familiar with the Jordan touch points of his youth and how those have aged over time. “The Jordan stuff I wear now is like if I go to a vintage market and I find some really old stuff that’s kind of patinaed or weathered in,” he says. “To me, the vintage nature of it allows you to kind of wear it outside of its intended purpose.”

Taking Union’s reputation for elevated taste and commitment to quality fabrics and construction, the Union x Air Jordan collection carefully captures that transcendence. It pulls from a golden era in sports and streetwear — a tone evoked by the color of the wash on the apparel to the careful distressing on the Air Jordan 1s.

The shoes also capture Gibbs’s approach with a fresh perspective on the mashup. Each fuses together classic Air Jordan 1 colorways with a noticeable stitch mark, evidence of a process that celebrates DYI culture and vintage hunting. Gibbs describes the inspiration as finding your most coveted pair of sneakers at the flea market, then elevating it by combining it with another pair to create a unique 1-of-1.

This colorway takes on a color makeup of White/Varsity Red-Wolf Grey-Black which brings together the Black Toes and the White/Grey Jordan 1s. The shoe features a leather build on the upper with suede detailing on the collar and UN/LA branding on the ankle.