Walking into school with the newest pair of Jordan’s growing up guaranteed you instant fame. You were automatically the coolest kid in school. Starting in 1985, Jordan’s quickly revolutionized the gym shoe; not only for basketball but for style.

Michael Jordan is currently worth a whopping 650 million. He makes roughly 80 million a year in endorsements, 60 million through Nike with his clothing and shoe brand and 30 million in salaries. It is no question that the man knows how to make money by creating a brand. He has made a product that people are literally killing each other over.

There have been numerous accounts of people being hurt and even killed over these shoes. People who have a passion for shoes are known as “Sneaker Heads”, some own up to hundreds of pairs of shoes. They wait in lines for new shoe releases and pay hundreds and even thousands of dollars so they can own a particular pair.

For these people however, shoes are more than something that go on your feet.  They are a fashion statement, a way to boost your ego.. etc. When deciding what to wear, people with a shoe obsession start with choosing their shoes and picking an outfit to match them.

Growing up, Jordan’s were hands down the only shoe to wear if you wanted to be cool. I owned Jordan’s all throughout grade school in order to fit in with the cool crowd. Everyone wore Jordan’s since they came out in ’85; however I don’t see them as much anymore.

For me I don’t like the new style of Jordan shoes, I like the old school ones much more. This is one of the reasons I stopped buying them. Also they aren’t very comfortable. They also often crease and I’m constantly worried about ruining them or getting them dirty due to the high price I paid for them.  I am not as worried about fitting in with the cool kids or hot trends anymore. Is this a common theme with high school kids and the reasons why you don’t see Jordan’s as much anymore?

I would say the new hot brand would be the Nike Free runs. They are much more comfortable along with a more reasonable price. They don’t get dirty very easily and you can run in them, hence the name.  The shoes can easily be slid on and don’t need to be tied to stay comfortable. They are a very loose fitting, comfortable shoe that can quickly be tightened up and withstand long runs while promising comfort.

Maybe the Jordan fad isn’t over; it just dies off as you grow up. Grade school students are constantly finding new ways to fit in and be the cool kid. By high school most people have a pretty good idea of who they want to be and what their hobbies are. For some people this may be shoes. But I’m not saying people who wear Jordan’s in high school are still trying to fit in. Some people adore shoes and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

I think Jordan is losing a lot of customers when kids grow up and go to high school. If he created more shoes that were the way they looked when we were growing up he might fix this problem. He should do this along with offering more comfortable shoes and a more reasonable price when he is advertising to kids who are beginning to pay for their own footwear.

If Jordan made more shoes the way they used to in the 90’s I think they would win back a lot of customers. Although I don’t think he is too worried about acquiring more money, he is doing just fine. Overall, a more comfortable and cost effective shoe would get many more high school kids back into Jordan’s.