In
the mid 1980s the Nike shoe company came out with several new shoe
designs, most particularly created for the sports industry that had
always supported Nike so well. Along with new designs, during this
period Nike negotiated a contract with Michal Jordan, a well-known, and
highly popular, basketball player. Over the next two decades Nike would
carry on a line of Jordan shoes in various styles, even after Jordan's
retirement from pro basketball.
The two major features that set Nike Air Jordan shoes apart from other
sneakers were in the design of the shoe itself, and in the logos
printed on the shoes. The earliest shoes, released in 1985, were a
leather base in both high top and low top varieties. They were the
first shoes to carry the winged basketball that would come to be known
as one of two Nike Air Jordan standard logos. This logo would appear on
three versions of Nike Air Jordan Shoes, printed on either the side
near the ankle or on the tongue of the shoe. When the fourth version
was introduced in 1987 the logo was changed to what was dubbed the
'jumpman' a picture of a basketball player going up for a slam-dunk.
This logo appeared on many places depending on the particular shoe.
Sides, tongue and sole were all fair game for logo placement and the
jumpman appeared on all.
The most unique feature of the Air Jordan line though was in the Nike
Air technology. This allowed for a design that brought extra air into
the sole of the shoe, creating a better cushion for the foot of the
wearer. All of the Air Jordan shoes had this technology, but it became
much more visible in the later lines. In these designs a squeezable
shoe 'pump' was installed into the tongue of the shoe. By pressing the
pump a customer could change the firmness of the fit of the shoe,
adjusting this for personal preference and maximum comfort.
Currently many top of the market shoe stores sell the Nike Air Jordan
shoe lines at full retail prices, leaving wholesale Nike Air Jordan for
outlet stores, prices ranging from $70 to over $300, averaging out
around $100. In order to combat these prices and take a share of the
wholesale Nike Air Jordan market online websites such as
urbanhotlist.com have appeared. They offer discounted prices on these
shoes, through wholesale options and bulk orders. This guarantees the
authenticity and quality of the shoes, but for a much lower price.
Both advantages and disadvantages exist when it comes to purchasing
from an online wholesale site, like urbanhotlist.com. The access to a
much broader base of merchandise, in this case additional colors and
styles of shoes that might not be available in stores and at wholesale
pricing, can be kept reasonable, even after shipping and handling.
For these reasons, among others, websites such as urbanhotlist.com have
become popular with wholesale Nike Air Jordan consumers. The biggest
drawback to such sites is that the customer is unable to see or handle
the merchandise before it is purchased. Customers must be sure to get a
good refund policy before placing an order, so that any defects or
sizing problems can be easily addressed.