Following up on their highly sought-after take on the Air Jordan I, Union owner Chris Gibbs is now shifting his focus to his second-favorite silhouette from the Air Jordan lineup, the Air Jordan IV, for the brands’ sophomore collaboration.
This all new AJ IV combines thick but plush suede and old school mesh reminiscent of the old-school sneakers from the 80s. The colors continue the narrative told on the AJ I by combining black, white, red and blue, while at the same time offering something new by switching to muted versions of these colors.
After initial confusion about the folded tongue, a distinct feature of the Air Jordan IV Union, the fairly easy removal of some strategic stitching will allow everyone to rock the shoes the way they prefer.
Back in the day, I had always liked to wear my IV’s with a short tongue, so I would fold them over themselves and tie them down. So we decided to fold the tongue over and stitch it down with the same stitch pattern that we used on the 1’s. The good news here is that the stitch can be easily removed to reveal a normal tongue size if that’s your preference. Another fun detail is that with the tongue folded over the original ‘AIR JORDAN’ interior branding now becomes external.
Chris Gibbs, Union L.A.
In addition, the Air Jordan IV Union makes subtle changes to the paneling of the shoes to create a slightly different shape to the AJ IV, allowing for a more balanced ratio of mesh to suede.
The Air Jordan IV Union releases at BSTN on Wednesday, September 30th. For your chance to purchase a pair, make sure to enter the BSTN Raffle before Tuesday, September 29th, at 3 pm CEST via the button below!
