IMAGE: NIKE

After several months of delay, Nike has finally announced that its highly anticipated Space Hippie collection will be arriving across all Nike stores (and selected retailers like END) on 11 June 2020. So what’s the deal about this sneaker collection, and what sets it apart from all the other sneakers that are currently out there in the market today?

Well, as strange as it may sound, Space Hippie is inspired by the possibility of life on Mars, where materials are limited and there is no resupply mission. Which imagines the sneakers predominantly created from scraps (or ‘space junk’ if you’re following the narrative), which translates to Nike using recycled materials that are sustainable for the environment. That explains why the Space Hippie collection is highly lauded (apart from the fact that they look pretty darn good), coming with one of the lowest carbon footprint scores ever.

IMAGE: NIKE

The Flyknit upper is made from 90% rPoly using recycled plastic water bottles, tees and yarn scraps, while the midsole comprises of factory scraps from the production of the Vaporfly 4%, along with reprocessed ZoomX foam that comes together for added cushioning. The Crater Foam sole can be found across all four silhouettes (named Space Hippie 01 to Space Hippie 04), featuring a blend of 15% Nike Grind rubber combined with 100% recycled foam materials for a lightweight finish. Space Hippie is only the beginning of Nike’s continued efforts toward a better future, tackling environmental problems that predominantly revolve around climate change. Even the packaging is crafted from repurposed material and printed with plant-based ink, coming in a single ‘plain’ shoebox instead of the usual Nike double box that’s way more flashy.

Prices start from SGD209 for the low-cut Space Hippie 01, before going up to SGD229 for the mid-cut Space Hippie 02 and SGD259 for the high-cut Space Hippie 03. The Space Hippie 04 (SGD209) will come in two colours, the standard Light Grey (with an orange tick), as well as Dark Grey, which is fashioned with bolder elements like black laces and a lime-yellow tick. Now that you’ve saved the date, you should save the time as well; 1000 hours over on Nike Singapore is when you can get your hands on shoes that are ‘out of this world’.

IMAGES: NIKE