Everything You Need To Know About Jordan Brand's Flight 23 Store

Taking flight soon.

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Complex Original

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It's official. Flight 23 will be unveiled to the world tomorrow. The first Jordan-only store, which is located in New York City on 225 34th St between 7th and 8th Ave., will open its doors for the first time this Saturday at 10 a.m. 

Complex sat down with Jordan Brand creative director Keith Crawford to get the backstory on the entire project. "We’ve been talking about doing this for a long time," said Crawford, who headed up the design of the store with the help of an architectural firm. "The moment is right for us to do this right now for all different reasons." The creative director broke down the reasoning behind Jordan Brand's first-ever 3D experience, and then some below. Here is Everything You Need to Know About Jordan Brand's Flight 23 Store.

The Jordan Brand chose New York as the first location for Flight 23 because....

"It’s literally the birthplace of Michael Jordan and it’s a great basketball city. It’s also just three blocks away from Madison Square Garden."

Architecture inside the store is inspired by Tinker Hatfield's approach to design and includes cues from iconic Air Jordans like carbon fiber and elephant print.

"The way we approached the design of the store is the way Tinker approached designing the Air Jordan, which was to do what's unexpected and surprising. There’s DNA of the brand in a lot of places."

There's also a golden chandelier in the shape of the number 23 that's made of 350 Jumpmen.

"We have an incredible sculptural element. It’s the first thing you’ll notice when you walk into the store. This incredible piece of art."

Design inspiration for the store was to combine the aesthetic of a sneaker shop with a luxury boutique.

"The space itself feels elevated and refined and obviously Jordan. The concept was to mix modern sport and a high-end menswear boutique store. Clean, modern, and not gimmicky."

It will have the widest assortment of Jordan products of any store in North America.

“We’re focused on this being the pinnacle location from Jordan brand on the product side of things.”

In fact, figuring out what sneakers to sell at Flight 23 was one of the biggest challenges to completing the store.

"Whenever you open a store, you’ve got to have the right product. And you've got to have the right product 365 days of the year."

Not only will Flight 23 have the widest assortment of Jordan products, but it will also double as a venue for special events.

"We also want it to be a showcase for all the product and athlete stories we tell." 

Since Flight 23 is a partnership with Footaction, it will be directly connected to the Footaction flagship store next door with a hallway. 

“The space will definitely feel different. Hopefully, you’ll never see a store like this before”

Opening Flight 23 was a year in the making, and is the first of of several stores that the brand hopes to open in the coming years.

"The store is Jordan Brand’s first 3D experience. It’s really what’s next for Jordan as a brand." 

Update:

The following sneakers will be available for Flight 23's grand opening:

  • Melo M10 – Black History Month
  • Melo M10 – Black/White
  • Melo 1.5 Black/Red/White
  • Jordan XX8 SE – Black/White
  • Jordan XX8 SE – Black/Grey/Blue
  • Jordan XX8 SE – Powder Blue
  • Air Jordan I – Black History Month Black/Purple
  • Air Jordan I – Black History Month Burgundy/Gold
  • Air Jordan I Premium – Red/Army/White
  • Air Jordan I – Red/Blk/White
  • Air Jordan I – Blk/Red/Green
  • Air Jordan I – Black/Gold