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A few weeks ago, we took you through the LeBron X NIKEiD experience through the eyes of the user. And, after impatiently waiting through the creation process (and a hurricane), my kicks finally came in the mail.
I wasted no time ripping open the brown, bland postal box. And then there it was—the Nike box, with a bright, shiny “X” logo on the side, the Nike+ marker on top, and my Franken-LeBron masterpiece waiting inside. I opened it slowly, not wanting to crease or crinkle even the tissue paper (printed with Xs all over).
Nike+ materials: check. LeBron Xs designed by me: check. Snap, snap, snap. Had to document the greatness, as the rest of the SLAM fam wandered in and congratulated me on how smooth they looked—though probably only a handful knew I designed the colors for nearly every inch of the sneaker.
The ability to pick every little particular is what makes them mine. And what makes the LeBron X NIKEiD experience different from past incarnations.
See, last year, the LeBron 9 NIKEiD experience featured two separate design experiences, each with a “directional” approach. One was team and player-focused, giving consumers a chance to build their own on-court player edition kicks. The other was the LeBron 9 Limited iD, which focused more on classic color ways from James’ past and some of his favorite all-time kicks from the Nike catalog.
And while response to the LeBron 9 was overwhelmingly positive, NIKEiD says customers wanted to take their own inspiration and mix and match it however they wanted to. So the team at NIKEiD did just that.
“It’s really an evolution. What we really wanted to do with it was to elevate and amplify the design inspiration that went into the product itself,” the NIKEiD team says. “The inspiration was really this notion of a diamond collection.”
Now, consumers can make a team-colored player shoe, express themselves of the court with a lifestyle look, or anything in between. The wide-ranging color palette Nike offers includes exclusive new colors created for LeBron himself (and the X), plus classic team colorways. But most exciting are the things you can do to take it over the top—like the speckle, the translucent outsole and the phrases on the side paneling that connect back to LBJ’s journey.
Nearly every color available has the potential to be splattered on every single component of the shoe. There are the same number of color options on the midsole, the lining, the laces and so on.
Building your own custom LeBron X is an all-encompassing experience, thanks to the NIKEiD team’s desire to take the restraints off and leave as much designing up to the consumer as possible. The customization experience is as natural and intuitive as ever.
“There’s so much in this shoe. It has some of the most innovative and cutting edge technology to date from Nike. Whether it’s the full length zoom unit, the Nike plus experience or the dynamic Flywire, there’s an incredible amount of performance,” says NIKEiD. “So from a customization standpoint, we wanted to make sure that we were 100 percent authentic to every performance lens and then also 100 percent authentic to that express lens. And making sure that there’s a depth of options.”
Just try not to be overwhelmed.
