Facts About the Jordan 1 Mid Royal Violet
The Air Jordan 1 is the trainer that started it all, marking the beginning of the most iconic lineage of trainers in history. In many ways, it's responsible for launching modern-day trainer culture as a whole - and it almost didn't happen.
History of Air Jordan 1
As the story goes, the year was 1984, and Chicago Bulls' rookie Michael Jordan was a hot commodity for endorsement deals, with trainers naturally being paramount.
Jordan had just come off a stellar college basketball season at the University of North Carolina. He wore Converse and was a personal fan of Adidas, so he took meetings with both companies, but they never reached a deal. It seems strange today, but at the time, Michael Jordan hated Nike - so much so that he refused to take a meeting with them.
He was persuaded by his mother, Deloris Jordan, to visit the Nike campus in Oregon and listen to their pitch. His plan was to go through the motions to appease his parents and agent but he ultimately left with a contract unlike any other.
Rather than walking in the shadows of established athletes like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird (which may have been the case had he signed elsewhere), Michael Jordan shone in the Nike limelight. He was paid more than any other athlete with a trainer endorsement at the time. Nike made him the face of its growing presence in basketball, and gave him his own trainer line - called Air Jordan.
The Jordan 1 Mid Royal Violet is a lace-up lifestyle trainer. The Royal Violet colourway is a hybrid of Hyper Royal and Hyper Violet, which are two previous Jordan 1 options. Shoe uppers are crafted from white leather and are accented with royal blue panels on the heel, eyestays, and toe wrap. A violet Swoosh starts at the heel and extends to the midfoot; the same violet colour appears on the tongue badge. This Jordan 1 Mid colourway also features the classic Air Jordan Wings logo in black on the lateral side of the collar. The Jumpman logo appears on the tongue badge and insole. Perforated toes provide ventilation and a hint of retro style, and the simple white midsole adds a clean finishing touch to this Jordan 1 Violet shoe.
