The people of the Dominican Republic will have something special to celebrate on their Dominican Independence Day this Saturday, February 27. Nike is releasing its Air Max 95 De Lo Mio sneakers in collaboration with designer César Pérez paying tribute to the Dominican Republic.
César Pérez is a celebrated Dominican American designer who grew up in the uptown Manhattan neighbourhood famed for its Dominican-rooted population. Growing up he was inspired by Puerto Rico and West Indies-influenced sneakers. He always wondered why there wasn’t any sneaker dedicated to Dominicans. With the Nike collaboration, he finally got his dream fulfilled.
The first collaboration was the Nike Air Force 1s “De Lo Mio” released in 2018. De Lo Mio in Dominican means “my friend”, “my family”, or “my kin”. It is notably a term that represents camaraderie within this close-knit community. Little things like these make these sneakers special. It is a perfect opportunity for César Pérez to expose the Dominican culture to customers all across the globe through Nike. He says that it is uplifting to see De Lo Mio on the sneakers. For him, it is something they say when they see their people doing good, “Eso, de lo mio”.
The tribute to the Dominican Republic continues with the release of Nike Air Max 95 “De Lo Mio” in 2022. Another reason for this release is the large concentration of the natives of the Dominican Republic in the uptown neighbourhood of New York City. Nike has designed these sneakers to honour these people.
The first set of Nike sneakers dedicated to Dominicans was released in November 2018 as “De Lo Mio” Air Force 1s. This sneaker was created through a collaborative design process in which César Pérez shared his thoughts and tales with Nike designers in order to produce a stunning tribute to the Dominican Republic's rich legacy, culture, and customs. It features a University Red and Sport Blue Swoosh symbolising the vibrant yet smooth transition of the Dominicans from their country to New York City. The Swoosh logos incorporate a head-turning effect that switches its look from red to blue. Its white upper is joined by red and blue accents as a tribute to the Dominican national flag. The sneakers are complemented by three extra domino lace dubraes. It also included the word “Republica” on one heel and “Dominicana” on the other.
The Nike Air Max 95 comes with a mix of mesh, leather, and rubber with a white leather upper. It has iridescent piping and hits of 3M neon green stripes at the eyelets that pop from its clean white uppers. The neon on these sneakers was inspired by three things for César Pérez. One is the Dominican police wearing neon vests, the second is the plants in the Dominican mountains turning neon green when it rains, and the last inspiration for him was Omahyra Mota, the supermodel of the 90s who had neon hair.
The Nike Air logo is embroidered in blue at the heel of both the shoes with ‘Republica’ written above on one and ‘Dominicana’ on the other. At the top of the shoe is the woven tri-toned “airmax” label. The white uppers are placed above a row of horizontal panels accentuated by iridescent piping and reflective paneling. It has a cream-color midsole with an Air unit cushioning system for comfort and stability.
Covid-19 and the subsequent production issues brought about an abrupt cancellation to a 2020 wider release of the Nike Air Max 95 “De Lo Mio”. Now, the Dominican-inspired colorway will be dropping on Saturday, February 27 to coincide with Dominican Independence Day. This sneaker will be available in a White/Racer Blue-Light Smoke grey color and the price varies as per the retailers and the online sellers.
You can buy Nike Air Max 95 “De Lo Mio” from the Nike online store or from any physical sneaker store. But you cannot be assured of one since they are the top-selling sneakers and they vanish minutes after the drop.
Instead, you can buy Nike shoes online from your favorite sneaker store, Sole Seriouss. We have a range of Nike Air Force 1s, Air Max 95s, SB Dunks, and many more. You can even pre-order your favorite Nike shoes here from the best online sneaker store. Rest assured, these sneakers are authentic and we don’t sell knock-offs.
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