2014 Sneakers Releases and a Great Year for Sneaker Heads
Written By: Ludwig Ian Dalusong
2014 was an amazing year for sneaker releases. We saw a lot of old and new designs all year long, making it difficult for sneakerheads to keep a tight leash on their wallets.
January started with a bang, but the highlight for me was the release of the Jordan 3 powder blue. Arguably the best designed retro Jordan, coming in with a fresh new colorway, the shoes were sold out immediately as expected. January also saw the release of the Kobe preludes. Retro of all Kobe’s from 1 to 8. These were very limited and had a higher price tag than usual.
February is always awesome with two events always coming in, Black History Month and the All Star Games. As usual, Nike released their versions for their superstars, Kobe, Lebron and KD. But 2014 is also the 23rd year of the Jordan 6, so this month had the most recognizable of them all, the white/infrared colorway, and otherwise known as the home colorway of the shoe when MJ was still rocking them. Alongside the white/infra, Jordan Brand also released a new colour simply called infrared or “toro” to enthusiasts. This was also very limited so only a few were lucky to grab a pair. But the highlight of February has got to be the release of the Kobe 9 Elite. Draped in the All Star Game theme, this quickly vanished from stores.
March was one of the quieter months for releases, with the usual new colour variations of recently released models. But two come to mind as highlights for me. First was another Jordan 3 retro, this time in a white/black-cement/infrared colorway, and then there was the first Kobe 9 lowtop in a familiar “bruce lee” theme.
April was the start of the playoff season so we saw the elite versions of KDs and Lebrons kicks as per tradition. April also saw some new Jordan retro’s with “Barons” Jordan 1 and 9 coming in the early part of April. Many sneakerheads were happy with the releases of the “Yeezy” Foamposites and the Lebron 11 EXT “denim”, both of which were seen for the first time. Also worth mentioning are the “What the” KDs and Lebrons, pairs that hardly saw the light of day here in our country. Last but definitely not the least was the Philippine Exclusive Kobe 9 EM, specifically designed for our homeland by one of our own.
May and June were even quieter months, as far as number of new models released but by no means in terms of heat, with having the long awaited Jordan 6 “Carmine” release as the highlight of the month on May, and the Jordan 6 “Championship Pack” release on June. The Championship Pack consists of the “Champagne” and “Cigar” theme. All 3 models were limited. But the best kicks for these two months I have to say are the long rumoured release of the Jordan 11 “Concord” Low. Never has a shoe been more sought after seeing them on MJs feet while playing beer pong last 2013.
July and August had no significant release for me personally, especially after all the heat that’s been dropping the previous months. Only notables are a few Jordan retros in the “Sport Blue” theme.
September came bangin again as the release of the Jordan 14 “Ferrari” came, as well as the OG colorway “Blacktoe”. Also came in that month was the introduction of Lebrons 12th shoe which was received with mixed reactions from the sneaker community.
