Sneaker News Top 30 Sneakers of 2011

At this point, we’ve seen almost every concept you can possibly think of translated into a pair of sneakers, so it’s pretty rare nowadays that something comes along that makes you say – How did no one ever think of this? New Jersey’s Packer Shoes did just that earlier this year with their four shoe ‘Grand Slam Pack’ collaboration with Reebok. A classic, but still relevant tennis model crossed with inspiration from the four major annual tennis tournaments. A no-brainer idea and simple enough concept, but it was the execution on this collection of Court Victory Pumps that elevated the endeavor from just a great idea to collectively one of the most bold and ambitious releases of the year.

In addition to each shoe taking its design nods from the respective Grand Slam events, each was released alongside its corresponding tourney, stretching the pack over the course of eight months. It kicked off in January with the Australian Open edition, featuring a flag-inspired color scheme sporting the stars on the toe guard and

even a hidden “kangaroo” pouch behind the tongue. The French Open version followed in May, featuring arguably the wildest look of the four shoes – a white canvas upper stained with simulated clay court splatter. The following month saw the Wimbledon grassy green suede Pumps that made some additional noise with their clever streaker promo. Last but not least, was the US Open in August with a crazy all blue 3M upper as a nod to the color of the court, as well as the bright lights of New York City.

From concept to final product, materials to color blocking, the Grand Slam Pack was a grand slam in its own right, selling out quickly and instantly becoming a hot commodity among fans of the pack and the Pump line alike. While some of the designs may have been a little too bold for some to actually wear, there were plenty of folks ready to rock them and no one could deny the originality or attention to detail. Concept packs come and go, but the Packer x Reebok ‘Grand Slam Pack’ will certainly live on as a standout effort and one of the best Pump collaborations to date.