Patta is undoubtedly one of the coolest brands in streetwear. The Dutch-based brand started as a streetwear and sneaker boutique in Amsterdam in 2004. Founded by Edson Sabajo and Guillaume ‘Gee’ Schmidt, the name Patta comes from the founders’ native Surnamise language and translates to “shoe.” Sabajo and Schmidt would travel the globe buying full-size runs of sneakers to ship back to Amsterdam for their growing business. It didn’t take long for the nascent brand to rise to prominence as it caught the attention of Nike within only two years of operation and started its long and successful history of collaboration with The Swoosh.
Nike Air Max 90 “Homegrown”
The duo’s work ethic cemented the boutique as a powerhouse in the streetwear community, and Nike and Patta first joined forces in 2006, just a couple of years after Patta’s opening. For their first offering, Patta took on the Nike Air Max 90 for a collaboration referencing one of Amsterdam’s popular pastimes. The silhouette features a mix of nubuck and leather with suede details to give it a leaf-like look. Orange accents on the inner lining and in the air bubble in the midsole evoke a burning appearance, while a white midsole and gum rubber outsole complete the theme. The collaboration launched in tandem with the online Dutch magazine ‘Homegrown/State’ and even included a commercial that teased the nature of the partnership.
Nike Air Max 1 “Chlorophyll”
Just three years later, in 2009, Nike doubled back for Patta’s 5th anniversary for a five-pack of the Nike Air Max 1. The famed silhouette from 1987 proved one of Patta’s favorites even in the early days. One colorway opted for OG color-blocking but with forest green accents in place of the red. That ‘Chlorophyll’ colorway has become one of the most vaunted pairs in the history of sneakers.
Nike Air Max 1 “Purple Denim”
Alongside the ‘Chlorophyll’ colorway, another of Patta’s 5th-anniversary colorways referenced the legendary original Air Max 1 with the rare ‘Purple Denim’ coloration. Using the original color-blocking of the Nike Air Max 1, the green suede of the ‘Chlorophyll’ colorway gets replaced by the aptly named ‘Purple Denim.’
Nike Air Max 1 “Denim”
Patta and Nike returned months later with a third Air Max pair with a dark tonal color to finish the year. While the first two selections in the Patta Air Max collection leaned into the sneakers’ heritage, the third iteration went for a more modern take. The sneaker features premium materials like corduroy, suede, nubuck, and denim. The striking purple accents give this dark silhouette a bit of flare.
Nike Air Max 1 “Lucky Green”
2009 wasn’t the end of Patta’s 5th-anniversary celebration as the releases spilled over into the start of the new decade. One such release was the Nike Air Max 1 “Lucky Green,” which features an almost entirely black makeup with white accents on the Swoosh, laces, and midsole. The namesake “Lucky Green” only appears in spurts with accents on the Patta branded tongue tag, aglets, eyelets, and visible Air bubble making this one of the more understated looks of the celebration.
Nike Air Max 1 “Cherrywood”
The final piece in the 5th-anniversary collection came in March 2010. After months of consecutive releases, Patta and Nike saved the best for last. For the grand finale, fellow Dutch mainstay Parra joined the duo to add his touch to the silhouette. An ultra-rare release with less than 300 pairs made, the Patta x Nike Air Max 1 “Cherrywood” features a build of burgundy suede with a chenille Swoosh on the lateral side. The mismatched Swooshes on the lateral and medial sides that were burgundy and light blue, respectively, matched the asymmetrical look of the eyelets, which were light blue and yellow, respectively.
Patta x Nike Air Force 1 Bespoke “World Tour”
Patta and Nike took a bit of a break from collaboration, but once Patta took off on its world tour, where the duo opened pop-up locations all over the globe, the Swoosh and Patta had to make something special. Along with limited edition apparel, Patta and Nike crafted 80 pairs of exclusive Nike Air Force 1s only sold in Asia. The pairs were an all-white affair made with a handwoven canvas and other premium materials. The luxurious sneakers came at a steep $800 price point with a special box that included each sneaker wrapped in a velvet bag.
Patta x Nike Span 2
In 2018, Patta went deep into the Nike vault for their next collaboration and decided to take on the Nike Air Span 2, a running shoe that initially dropped in 1988. Two colorways of the sneaker were made, one a burgundy and brown mixture, and the other was an homage to the iconic Infrared colorway of the OG silhouette made exclusively for Family and Friends. Minimal Patta branding on the tongue, Patta’s signature mini Swoosh on the toebox, and the added technical mesh make this reboot one of Patta’s cleanest and most accessible.
Patta x Air Max 95/90 “By You”
Just months after their collaboration on the Span 2, Nike tapped Patta to be a part of its upcoming reboot of the NikeID program retitled Nike By You. Patta constructed a hybrid sneaker that offered the Air Max 95 with the Air Max 90 tooling or the Air Max 90 with the 95s tooling for a unique silhouette. Not only was the silhouette rare, but Nike By You users could customize their pair in many ways, including colors and materials.
Patta x Air Jordan 7 ‘Shimmer and Icicle’
In 2019, Patta expanded to the Jordan family of the Nike brand for the first time and took on one of His Airnesses’ less heralded silhouettes with the Air Jordan 7. Patta dropped a duo of colorways in ‘Shimmer’ and ‘Icicle,’ respectively, with the brown-ish ‘Shimmer’ colorway releasing in the Summer and the gray ‘Icicle’ colorway following it later that Fall. These releases are probably the most heavily Patta-branded silhouettes in their long collaborative history with Nike, with repeating ‘Patta’ logos appearing on the midsole.
Patta x Air Max 1 ‘Monarch’
In October 2021, Patta returned to its first love, the Air Max 1, after nearly a decade. Instead of the more referential colorways of their 5th-anniversary collection, Patta did something entirely different with its ‘The Wave’ collection. The duo gave the classic 1987 silhouette a new look by giving its mudguard a wavy look. The first among the group to be released was the Monarch colorway which sported a blend of white and khaki overlays on a gray mesh base.
Patta x Air Max 1 ‘Aqua Noise’
Just days after the release of the ‘Monarch’ colorway, Nike and Patta followed it up with the release of the ‘Noise Aqua’ rendition. This version used the same color blocking as the ‘Monarch’ except the khaki portions on the mudguard and Swoosh were exchanged for a light blue accent.
Patta x Air Max 1 ‘Night Maroon’
November of 2021 marked another milestone in the collaboration between Nike and Patta as they came with another colorway of the Air Max 1 in ‘Night Maroon.’ Unlike the previous two colorways, which opted for more white, the ‘Night Maroon’ colorway features the standard gray technical mesh as the others but with maroon overlays throughout for a mostly maroon affair. The ‘Rush Maroon’ colorway was also the only one in the collection to have the silver piping around the Swoosh, making this offering stand out slightly more than its other cohorts.
Patta x Air Max 1 ‘Black’
To finish the year, Patta and Nike joined together for a ‘Black’ variation of the Nike Air Max 1. This version uses the gray mesh base just like the rest but bridges the gap between the two-toned ‘Monarch’ and ‘Noise Aqua’ colorways and the others with its different shades of Black on the overlays.
Patta x Air Max 1 ‘Dark Russet’
When we thought it was over, Patta teased a new colorway of its iconic new series early in 2022. This colorway opted for a brown set of overlays with a pink liner giving it a Louis Vuitton Yeezy-esque look with its color blocking. This outing sees the return of the silver piping found on the ‘Rush Maroon’ colorway. ‘Dark Russet’ serves as an inverse of the prior colorway, with the brown-ish sockliner of the initial release being the colors on the upper and the burgundy uppers mirrored in the pink lining of the ‘Dark Russet’ colorway.
Patta x Air Max 1 ‘White’
For their 5th installment in the ‘Waves’ collection, Patta and Nike will be releasing a crisp White version of their famous collaboration. The signature gray base and mini Swoosh return while the aged midsole stands out a bit more on this colorway than previous ones due to the stark white nature of the colorway. The summery colorway combined with Patta’s love for minimalism will make this one of the most popular collaborations yet.
Who would have thought? The collaborative sneaker that kicked off the 15-year partnership between Patta and Nike is returning. Though next year seems filled with them, re-releasing a classic sneaker collaboration is far from the norm. Patta is planning to celebrate its 20th anniversary in style, and those who miss out will be green with envy. The Chlorophyll Air Max 1 was released exclusively via pattaxnike.com. Set those alarms, as the release will be at 7 am EST.
