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Over the past few years, Adidas Samba supremacy has refused to die (which, fair; they’re a beautiful, timeless trainer). More than that, though, anyone who’s opted for a Samba alt has tended to go for one of the many other slim, retro-looking silhouettes: your Puma Palermos, your Onitsuka Tigers, and such. Trainers that look like Sambas, but crucially aren’t. This has meant that everyone is now basically wearing the same sort of trainer, with the gummy sole and ’70s vibe. Except for one, that is… the one It-trainer that I’ve started to think of as the anti-Samba: the Nike Shox.
At British Vogue HQ, I’ve noticed that a lot of my colleagues are partial to a pair of Nike Shox. Usually the all-black TLs, which can look alarmingly chic for a sporty trainer and, oddly, smarten up a look as well as casualize it. But I’ve spotted a couple of all-white versions on the streets of London also. And, for the super brave, there’s the volt/fire red colorway which is giving Y2K. Essentially, they’re the anti-Samba because they’re everything the Samba isn’t: faintly futuristic, a little chunky and sporty, with a delectable glossy finish. There’s also something that feels quite British about the style, despite them having American origins (when Nike teamed up with British-Jamaican designer Martine Rose last year, the result was a wonderfully weird pair of Shox that essentially took over fashion month on both sides of the Atlantic).
When Nike Shox first came out, in 2000, when I was a kid, I remember thinking that they were like something from the future. They looked like you should be able to fly in them, or at least bounce to previously unforeseen heights. While they don’t actually let you do that, unfortunately, I wasn’t far off. The concept for the Nike Shox first came from footwear designer Bruce Kilgore (who you might know as the daddy of Nike Airforce 1s), who was looking for a way to give runners more bounce when running track. Eventually, his research led to the first iteration of the Nike Shox—and the rest is history. The Nike Shox TL, however—which is the style that all the cool girls appear to be loving right now—was re-released last year after it’s original 2019 drop, which is why it feels fresh rather than nostalgic. Essentially, they’re everyone’s favorite old-but-new trainer. Sleek and current with a throwback twist.
In lots of ways, the popularity of the Nike Shox is a bit of an anomaly in the style world. At a time when trainers are getting slimmer and more retro-feeling, the Shox stands out for being an option that is less of a Samba alternative and more of an anti-Samba. Maybe we don’t want to be so close to the ground after all. Maybe we want a little spring in our step for once.
This article was originally published on British Vogue.
