Sneaker Dictionary

"SNEAKERHEAD" GLOSSARY


Version 1.1, will be updated constantly, if you have any suggestions or additions, please email me at [email protected]


A

All Condition Gear, ACG: A series of shoes produced and made specifically for outdoor usages, such as climbing and hiking, usually made very sturdy and durable to the outdoor surface and weather.


B

B-grade: A shoe that is not up to production standards and is considered “defect”, although these defects are so often so minute we can’t even see. B-grades are found in Nike outlets and factory stores, usually with a B stamp or mark on the tongue or the box.


BHM: Black History Month, it is the February month of every year.


BIN Premio: A collection of Air Jordans produced with premium materials and in limited quantities. The releases models include 1, 2, 5, 7 & 13.


Bred: Black and red.


C

Customs: self-created/altered shoes. 


D

Deadstock, DS: Brand New, never worn before.


Doernbecher: A children’s hospital in Portland, OR, with whom Jordan Brand and Nike do collaborations on shoes, and all the profits go to the research and funding for the hospital. 


E


F

Factory laced: laced tightly during the shoe production, has not been loosened.


Forcefield: A shoe insert that can be worn with the shoes to minimalize creasing.


Full Size Run, FSR: Usually meaning a shipment of size 8-14, (sometimes 7.5-15), usually one pair each size, with some sizes having two to three pairs.


G

General Release, GR:  A wide release with huge allocation numbers going to stores.


Get Money Boyz: A bunch of self-claimed ‎"connoisseurs”, who tried to persuade Michael Jordan to sell shoes at his own house.


Grade School, GS: Shoes made for infants, toddlers, children and young adults.


H

Hang tag: A tag that comes on shoes.


Heel drag: Normal wear and tear on the bottom of shoes.


Highest offer, H/O: Self-explanatory.


Hypebeast: A person who buys and wears shoes and clothing that are in high demand solely for that reason.


Holy Grail: The ultimate pair to have in one’s personal collection. 


House of Hoops: A Nike-Footlocker collaboration in which Nike allows FootLocker to carry some exclusive Nike basketball releases. There are many locations around the world. Exclusives from the past include Dark Army Air Foamposite One, Jason Kidd Flightposite One. 


HTM: Used to label shoes designed by Hiroshi Fujiwara, Tinker Hatfield and Mark Parker.


Hyperstrike: Very limited releases, usually with very low production number.


I


J

JD Sports: A sport/fashion retailer in the United Kingdom, www.jdsports.co.uk, created many exclusive air maxes. 


K

Kixpo: An annual sneaker convention/event held in Dallas (Arlington), TX in the Cowboys stadium.


L

Lace swap: self-explantory.


Lifestyle, LS: Air Jordan releases that came with matching apparels, mainly from 2006-2008.


M

Mercer: see 21Mercer.

MSRP: Manufacturer suggested retail price, also known as retail price. 



N

NDC: Nikestore Dot Com. Nikestore.com.


Near Deadstock, NDS: Used to denote the condition of a shoe, worn 5-12 time, but well taken of.


New In Box, NIB: Self-explanatory.


Niketalk, NT: Niketalk.com, an Internet message board. 


NikeTown: Nike flagship stores around the world.


NRG: An advertising company that works closely work with Nike. 


NSW: Nike Sportswear, brown box releases, usually made for casual usages and fashionable purposes.



O

OBO: Or best offer.


OG: Original release, or sometimes original packaging. 


P

Patta: A famous sneaker store in Amsterdam, had collaborations with Nike, including the famous Air Max 1 series.


Paypal: Paypal.com, a website where one can link up a credit/debit card or bank account to receive and send money. Secured transactions and provides protection for sellers and buyers.


Player Exclusive, PE: Shoes made for specific athletes, the majorities are never released to the public, but some do.


Q

Quickstrike, QS: A limited release, used to not have a release date (the majority of QS nowadays do), limited to releases at certain stores.


Quai54: An annual French basketball tournament, sponsored by Jordan Brand.


R

Retro: A remake of the original.


Retro card: A card that came with Air Jordan retros, depicting the original Jordan model or Michael Jordan himself wearing the model. The last Air Jordan retro that came with the card was the Red/White Air Jordan retro XIIs, in 2009.


S

Sample: The so called prototype of a model, which 90% of the time ends up looking different than the final product. Many of these are produced in the process of creating new shoes and colorways.


Seaglow: A product developed by Island Girl, can be used to restore clear soles and clear materials on shoes.  You can purchase them at: http://www.islandgirlproducts.com/


Solecollector, SC, ISS: Solecollector.com, a news and internet message board site.


Stars: The designs usually present on the soles of Air Force 1s, Dunks, goes away with wears and tears. (90% stars: not worn many times)


Stash: a famous NYC graffiti artist, has done many collaborations, including one with Nike.


T

Tier Zero, TZ: Very limited releases, low production number, usually exclusive to boutiques. 


U


V

Very Near Deadstock, VNDS: used to denote the condition of a shoe, worn very lightly and well take care of.


W


X


Y


Z


#

21Mercer: A Nike flagship store located in the SOHO area of Manhattan, New York City, carries many exclusive releases.


3M: A reflective material used on shoes, primarily used on running shoes, used to provide extra safety caution for runners at nights, when the light hits the shoes, the 3M parts will shine and reflect the light.


4%: The amount of fees that Paypal roughly charges for regular transactions.