John Kim 
The Nike 6.0 division has proven to be one of the burgeoning sub-categories of Nike’s current apparel and footwear product line – you can say thanks to the worldwide increase of popularity in sports that don’t require bouncing balls and team uniforms. The groundwork for Nike 6.0 was initially laid down by a cult-ish corner of Nike footwear – Nike Skateboarding; SB started off ten years ago with a tiny capsule of multi-colored Dunk Lows, which led to a number of new and re-done classic models as well as signature pro-models like the E-Cue, Tennis Classic, P-Rod, and Zoom Koston One. Following the success of the SB line, Nike 6.0 released its own set of Dunks at chain retailers, expanding its own library in the process. It’s no mystery that Nike SB has plateaued a bit in terms of the ‘gotta have it’ factor (save the QS and inspired release here and there), but during that short span, Nike 6.0 has grown immensely that it has now taken the front-and-center position – with SB perhaps falling under its wing.
A few developments with Nike SB/6.0 products for 2012 have us wondering what plans Nike has for its Action Sports category; for one, the P-Rod line, which is the first recognized signature line with Nike SB, no longer carries the ‘SB’ denotation on its logos, and thanks to these new images from MMASB of N-SB forums, it appears that the Nike 6.0 Mavrk will be fortified with Zoom Air cushioning (a Nike SB staple) while shedding it’s own 6.0 logo from its branding. Add in the acute observation of other N-SB members that Nike’s representation at Action Sports events now feature just a Swoosh (no 6.0 or SB), and we can arrive to the result that 6.0 and SB could be in for a ‘re-shuffling’ of sorts. Your thoughts on a potential merge of Nike 6.0 and SB? Let us know in the comments section below.
