Atmos, the Japanese sneaker retailer so famous for its many collaborations with nearly every shoe company under the sun, has released yet another sick pair of shoes, this time partnered up with New Balance. Using the classic M576 as the base template, these “Face OFF” editions are definitely some of the most interesting we’ve seen out of either New Balance or Atmos ever. Using glow in the dark materials for the N, and a mix of temperature sensitive and reflector materials for a great deal of the rest of the shoe, New Balance and Atmos have definitely created one of the most interesting, dynamic pairs of kicks ever imagined. These will be Atmos exclusives, so those of you outside of Japan will have to wait until the resell madness begins to grab a pair of these. Via Atmos.
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By now everyone probably has seen some part of the Nike x Fragment Design (Hiroshi Fujiwara) Zoom Tennis Classic Panda Pack that is currently being auctioned off via Japan’s Rakuten, with all the proceeds going towards helping those affected by the massive earthquake in China on May 12th. The Panda Pack comes in White and Black and features a Fragment “Lightning” logo on the heel of the shoe, a Fragment Design insignia screened on the insole of the shoe, and the Chinese characters “Si Chuan Jia You” which translated means “Let’s Go Si Chuan”. The difference between these Tennis Classics’ and one’s we may have seen in the past is that both of these pairs come with Zoom Air, a new feature for the Tennis Classic. If you’re fortunate enough to win a pair of these you will also be given a 50% Nike x Medicom x Fragment Design Panda Be@rbrick.
> Rakuten: Nike x Fragment Design - Zoom Tennis Classic Panda Pack
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We haven’t reported much on this Nike Dunk Japan Pack since we first featured it courtesy of Sneaker Freaker a few months back but now it looks like one pair has finally dropped and if our sources are correct this Nike Dunk Hi Premium was not only a Japan release only but also a Tier Zero release, hence the “TZ” in the name of the shoe. This Metallic Gold Dunk High was inspired by the city of Nagoya and it’s famous dolphin that sits atop the roof of the Nagoya castle. The hint of Mint Green mixed with the scale-like fabric on the side of the Dunk gives it an added feature that adds some additional value to the shoe. Unfortunately the shoe was released at the end of May at a few Stussy Chapter stores in Japan.
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The last time we saw a realmad HECTIC collaboration was the New Balance MT580 Synthetic - Stussy x Hectic x UNDFTD. This time the third collaborator is mita sneakers, but do share similarities in the bright color choice. The colors are inspired by CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) color model, a term often used in color printing. Look for these to drop July 5th, 2008 in Japan. Heads up: Hypebeast
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Asics is definitely the sneaker company of the day, with several stories on Sneaker News today. This will be our second to last, look out for news of another collaboration in a bit. This new collaboration between Asics and Mita, a fresh take on the Gel Lyte III, is definitely one of the best products we’ve seen out of the Japanese sneaker boutique in a while. With a very clean profile combined with some very vivid hues of purple and blue, and great use of patent leather to boot, these are definitely some of the cleanest kicks we’ve seen out of Asics in a while. These will be a Mita exclusive, so don’t expect them to start appearing outside of Japan anytime soon. Via Mita.
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In a second effort between Japanese brand MACDADDY, Japanese retailer Flauge and Reebok, the trio has come up with a bright colorway of the Reverse Jam for the summer. The first effort between the team which dropped in December featured colors in mostly white and black, this Summer’s version is perfect for shorts with bright yellow, pink and white. Unfortunately for those of you outside of Japan these are available exclusively at FLAUGE. Via Hypebeast
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The Nike Air Woven inspired by the annual Dragon Boat Festival is finally available after we first announced it back in early May. The Dragon Boat Festival, also known as the Dwueen Ng Festival was originated in ancient China after the high official Wut Yuen (c. 340 BC-278 BC) committed suicide by drowning himself in a river. He did so after he found out that Chu had lost a vital battle. The local people, knowing him to be a good man, decided to throw food into the river to feed the fish so that they would not eat Wut Yuen’s body. They also sat on long, narrow paddle boats called dragon boats to scare the fish away by the thundering sound of drums aboard the boat because the people loved him so much. This will be the first sneaker to celebrate this ancient Chinese Festival. These are now available in select stores in China and Hong Kong and online at RMK Store and eBay.
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A few days ago, Hiroshi debuted the second Fuji Rod he designed for Nike SB and P-Rod on Honeyee, since he only put up one image, we went out and found a few more for you guys. The upper’s color is actually sail and not white as we originally though and the yellow is neon yellow. The new photos also show the multiple sets of laces that should match up to the rainbow heel tab. Currently these have only available in Japan but we’ll update once we learn more about availability else where. The first Fuji Rod was recently made available in the US. Photos: bingorunner
Style: 318359-171
Color: Sail - Neon Yellow - Rainbow
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After the collaboration with Toy Machine, Ed Templeton and Emerica is collaborating with Hong Kong based Fingercroxx. This collaboration will include two colorways of the Transit Low, tee shirt and hat. Fingercroxx is a Hong Kong base streetwear apparel label that’s sold in I.T. stores. Ed Templeton is a professional skateboarder who started Toy Machine in 1993. Ed is also one of the featured artist of the Beautiful Losers traveling exhibition. Look for the collaboration exclusively at select Double Park retailers in Hong Kong.
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For their S/S 2008 collection, New Balance is releasing their “A09 for A22″ pack. Very similar to their previous Japan-only release of the A09s, these A09’s also come with a one piece hemp-canvas upper, and in colorways of Black, Dark Olive, and Natural. However, these limited edition kicks also come with some nice beadwork on the laces, and retain the classic, thoroughly Japanese, and minimalistic design of the originals. Look for these to remain a Japan-exclusive. Via Mita
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