I love products, and have a long track record of obsessing and writing about them. That’s why I’m gonna start doing in-depth product reviews like what you’ll see below on this website. Here’s the first one on the house…moving forward these reviews will move to a more premium tier. (More on that to come.)
Let me know in the comments below what other info you wanna know!
The Air Jordan 1 is the best sneaker ever—full stop. But I really mean this in terms of its timeless look and the fact that it basically birthed “sneaker culture,” a term that in 2022 rings hollow but once upon a time meant the underground community of folks who collect and LOVE rarified kicks. Today, because Js are so mainstream, brands like Collegium have sprung up to make the style in their own way and deliver it in a manner that’s more accessible (not paying $1,000 on the aftermarket) while still delivering on the things people love about the AJ1 to this day—the shape, the premium leather, and more recently a vintage-y look.
Orée New York is a brand that’s also familiar with this approach, having released their own more literal take on the AJ1 last year where the iconic Swoosh was swapped out for the Statue of Liberty. (Oreé makes lots of perfected versions of American classics like leather jackets, double knee pants, and caps.) Now, these two brands have come together for a military-inspired version of Collegium’s Destroyer High sneaker. I got a pair early so you can get the scoop on all of the tasty details that went into its creation and cop a pair for yourself when they drop on Saturday.
STYLE
Like I mentioned above, these are a perfect AJ1 replacement without being so similar to that legendary silhouette as to make anyone confused into thinking you’re wearing a pair of Nikes. They’re unique enough to still comment on the original shoe, but feature enough cool details of their own to stand on their own two soles.
An underrated detail here is how sleek the toe box is here, which does a nice job of emulating how a pair of kicks look when they’ve worn-in and pre-loved for decades right out of the box.
CONTSTRUCTION
Collegium posted the following to IG: “This is the first time we’re using and Italian textile canvas on our destroyer silhouette with hand distressing to create a ‘vintage fringe-effect’.” Basically that’s the olive green canvas you see on the upper, which feels rugged to the touch like a tote bag or pair of work pants and is made to get perfectly aged over time.
The leather is wonderfully supple and creamy and will look better the more you beat on these shoes. The vintage-style soles are made by Margom, which if you’re a total footwear nerd will be great news because that’s the same company that makes soles for companies like Balenciaga—but you’re getting ‘em here for non-Balenci prices.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS
You get a pair of cream and a pair of olive laces in the box, which is a cool touch, though I recently swapped out my other Destroyer Highs with white elastic laces which makes taking on and off the shoes really easy. (High-tops are always going to be a little bit more difficult to get on and off than lows that’s just science.)
A detail my previous Destroyer Highs didn’t have were the above insoles which are cool and show a map of New York (right shoe) and Los Angeles (left shoe).
OVERALL TAKE
PRICE: $250
RELEASE DATE: March 5 @10AM PST.
WHERE THEY’RE MADE: ITALY
MATERIALS: LEATHER, CANVAS, RUBBER
If you’re like me and are disenchanted by the state of sneaker shopping, these are a shoe that deliver on almost every level minus having a flex-y Nike logo. At this point in my life that’s totally fine by me, and I love that these two groups added their own sauce to the equation with the Italian canvas, which is a durable, stylish fabric that’ll also look great with jeans, double knee pants, basketball shorts…whatever.