What the Hell Happened in Sneaker Collaborations This Month?

Perhaps the strangest release of 2013 took a turn for one of the most head-scratching and confusion-inducing releases of 2014, too. Saint Alfred's collaboration with ASICS on a Gel Lyte III was supposed to go off without a hitch, but then things got delayed. Originally set to release on June 8, the sneakers hit shelves, and sold out quickly, on June 21. 

The gumsole and light blue suede upper of the Gel Lyte III was an undeniable combination, and even had some people believe it was one of the best sneakers of 2013. Just when everyone was either kicking themselves for not getting a pair or had forgot about the sneaker all together, the Saint Alfred x ASICS Gel Lyte III took an even stranger turn: It popped up in Australia. The Land Down Under is on an opposite season schedule than us in the Northern Hemisphere, but its sneaker releases aren't  - unless something as mind-boggling as the Saint Alfred x ASICS Gel Lyte III is involved. The sneaker is a paradigm shifter, not in a sense that it changed the game - although it was a stellar job done by both parties - but in a way that just makes you scream, "What the fuck?" to yourself, as you shake your head in front of your computer screen.

Nike SB Dunks were supposed to be left for dead. Collectors and consumers had moved onto only wearing Air Jordans or lightweight running sneakers. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, one of the greatest SB sneakers of all time changed that notion. The "Tiffany" Dunk, the infamous collaboration between Nick Tershay and his brand, Diamond Supply Co. and Nike SB, came back as a Hi and dropped like a bomb. The hype for the sneakers was real.

It's safe to say that a lot of people who have gotten into sneakers over the past few years don't have a pair of the original "Tiffany" Dunks in their collections, and this was the perfect time for them to get cling onto a piece of Nike SB history. What made the release even better (or worse) was the storyline that followed it. Someone, incorrectly, reported to Tershay that people were camping out a whole 10 days before the release, and skate shops weren't excited with the prospect of non-skaters lining up at their establishments and grabbing sneakers to, potentially, resell. One store in Florida demanded that the customers must be able to kickflip to wait in line, and another store, in Indiana, made customers prove that they skated to purchase the sneakers for the MSRP. If customers couldn't supply a skateboard, they would be forced to pay double. There was even a Tiffany Hi billboard in Downtown Los Angeles. The Tiffany Hi released, and, almost instantly, sold out on Nike.com.

It will take time to tell if the Tiffany Hi release was just a flash in the pan or a strong sign for Nike SB in the future. But it is indicator that a great color scheme and strong narrative can still sell a sneaker, regardless if there's hype attached to the silhouette or not.

Who would have thought that in 2014 a Undefeated x Nike Air Force 1 collaboration would be something that stirred the souls of sneakerheads? It's not 2006 anymore, and the Air Force 1 used had a Lunar sole and Hyperdunk tongue. In some ways, though, it still felt like the Undefeated collaborations that everyone is used to. There was plenty of hype behind both sneakers (a Hi and a Lo), the military theme was still present, and there's an interest in the Air Force 1 silhouette - even if people claim they've moved on.

This time around, Undefeated is a larger national brand than its days as a coveted sneaker store, and there's a rekindled interest in the streetwear days of old. The greatness of this collaboration isn't in the unfuckwithable mystique of Undefeated, it's because the brand created two great sneakers. Flight jacket-like material on an Air Force 1 is a good way to avoid the pitfalls of a wrinkled toebox or getting the dreaded scuff, and there's no one  - really, try and find someone - who will object to any sneaker made out of suede so hairy that the neps appear to be dangling. Sure, this isn't Undefeated's Air Jordan IV and Evidence of Dilated Peoples isn't wearing the sneakers in a music video, but this is still the West Coast sneaker vibe that dominated streetwear and sneakers almost 10 years ago - and could come back anyway now.

Packer Shoes likes to do something different than the rest of the sneaker boutiques. Yes, Packer, which is located in Teaneck, N.J., has a steady stream of collaborations that release from its shop's doors, but it also does projects that are rife with context. February 2014 was the 20th anniversary of Blue Chips—the film that starred Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway and showed the life of high school basketball recruits—and Packer ran with this theme and produced 20 pairs of a Blue Chips-themed Reebok Shaq Attaq.

The sneakers released on February 18, and were announced by a Twitter-only link from Packer. And they were gone nearly as quick as they came. Even as limited as the sneaker was, pairs were almost instantly popping up on eBay - and selling for serious cash. Let this be a lesson to other sneaker boutiques: When you think outside of the realm of your own store, you can come with great ideas. The "Blue Chips" Shaq Attaqs weren't just great because they were a blue and yellow basketball sneaker, they had money, the underlying theme of the film, as a graphic on the insole.