Virgil Abloh and the Off-White x Nike collaboration

Virgil Abloh is an unmissable figure in fashion and sneaker culture. He's the man behind Off-White, and of course the Off-White x Nike collaboration. What do you need to know about his story? Why does every sneakerhead think of him with such huge respect?

Virgil Abloh

For sneakerheads, knowing who he is counts as basic knowledge. For many, sneakers don't even bring Michael Jordan to mind first – they bring him. And the older the person you ask, the less likely they are to know him. Who are we talking about? 💁‍♂️

Yes, it's Virgil Abloh, an unmissable icon of the fashion world. The late founder and CEO of Off-White, and former artistic director at Louis Vuitton. The grand master of blending high fashion and streetwear. A legend. 🙏

Off-White

Virgil Abloh climbed every rung of the fashion industry ladder before finally founding Off-White in 2012. Off-White pieces were defined by the signature style that had practically become his trademark by then: a unique combination of signature zip ties, quality materials and familiar streetwear pieces.

Success didn't take long. By 2014 Abloh had access to every leading designer and fashion industry exec. Off-White became one of the most popular brands around. 🤩

The Off-White x Nike collaboration

It was the Nike and Off-White collaboration that made Virgil Abloh a star in the eyes of sneakerheads.

The story began in 2017, with the birth of The Ten collection – one of the most sought-after sneaker collections of all time. Legend has it that Abloh didn't design the shoes sitting at a desk, but with his own hands, cutting and slicing them up. He used knives and zip ties to create the perfect designs. That's how the first series of the Off-White and Nike collab came to life, in which 10 classic sneaker styles were reimagined. 👟

A year later, Abloh became artistic director of menswear at Louis Vuitton. The news blew the industry away (and that's putting it mildly). It was everywhere, and every public figure was talking about it.

You can guess the rest of the story: everything Abloh touched turned to gold (well, not literally)! Every sneaker born from the Nike collab was a huge hit from the moment it dropped. 😍

Virgil Abloh's death

At the end of 2021, much sadder news shook the world. Virgil Abloh passed away at the age of 41 – his death was caused by a very rare type of cancer affecting the heart.

Abloh fought the illness privately, keeping his treatments hidden from the public. He worked right up to the end: even in the last years of his life, he created lots of Off-White x Nike collabs, which always drew huge interest – but after the tragic news, even that multiplied.

Demand for everything connected to him skyrocketed. For example, the resale price of the Off-White Air Jordan 1 Chicago doubled just hours after news of his death broke. The price of the Jordan 1 Retro High Off-White Chicago also jumped 100% on one resale platform. If anything, this makes it clear that Abloh created something lasting.

Many think resellers are cashing in on Abloh's death, and that the ethical thing would be to stop selling products tied to his name.

Others argue that the shoes selling at these prices is a sign of respect for the designer. And some resellers donated part of the proceeds to charity.

What do you think? Who's right: the resellers or their critics?

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