Nike x Sacai Blazer Low “British Tan”: Double the Shoe?
Highlights
- Price: $120 [Sold Out]
- Pros: High-end Fashion, Mall Price
- Cons: Materials are Typical Nike, Durability Concerns
Specs
| Colorway | British Tan |
| Height | Low |
| Size | 13 |
| Weight | 614 g / 1.35 lbs |
| Construction | Vulcanized Rubber w/ Foxing Tape |
Contents:
History:
The Nike x Sacai Blazer Low is the latest in a long line of collaborations between Nike and the Japanese fashion brand Sacai. Following the wildly successful LDWaffle, the blazer high, and more, these shoes continue the tradition of overlaying panels from different shoes on top of one another.
With most of the Sacai collaborations doing extremely well, there is a lot riding on these shoes. Does the Nike x Sacai Blazer Low in British Tan keep the tradition going? Or is this too much? Let’s find out.
Looks:
Upper:
To begin – there is a lot going on with the Nike x Sacai Blazer Low. The upper is actually a mixture of a blazer high and – I think – a Dunk High.
The base of shoe is a brown suede on the toebox and running along the side of the shoe. The red panels, the longer swoosh and the eyelet panels, are from a Nike Blazer Low. On top of those panels, smooth brown panels from the Dunk follow on in the same places.
The doubling up doesn’t stop here. The shoe features two tongues – though the bottom tongue in red nylon only runs about 1/3rd of the length of the top tongue in brown suede. Criss crossing on top of these are the brown and red laces – which come in different weaves. The shoes also come with round white laces, though I don’t know why anyone would use them.
Another instantly noticeable styling feature is that these shoes look like a blazer high with the top few inches cut off. Around the collar is just raw foam. I know this is personal preference, but this is – by far – my least favorite part of the shoe. The raw edge sticking out makes your ankles look extremely skinny, like a mid-2000’s cartoon.
Inside the shoe, a white, loose-knit material covers the entirety of the lining. Only the black Nike and Sacai logos break it up.
Mid- and Outsole:
Just like the upper, it takes some time to really digest what is going on here. The midsole of this shoe takes the classic foxing tape look and turns it up to 11.
The shoe uses no less than 10 different rubber panels around the midsole of the shoe. Each of these are around double the thickness of normal foxing tape, and feature a heavy pattern on top.
Underneath, the main part of the outsole is the same as any other blazer. However, the foxing tape they use is very thick and adds more than a half inch of material in some locations.
Fit & Comfort:
Fit:
For as strange as the Nike x Sacai Blazer Low looks, it’s actually a pretty easy shoe to fit – just like any other Blazer low. That means long and narrow – even for Nike. I am around a 11.75 on the brannock and take these in a size 13, but I can only just fit in width wise and have a lot of space at the front of the shoe. For comparison, I take the Jordan 1 in a 13, the Stan Smith in a 12.5, and an Ultraboost in a 13.
Further, because all the rubber added around the rim of the shoe, these are not likely to stretch. If they don’t fit out of the box, they won’t fit.
For a full list comparing the sizing of every shoe we have reviewed, click here.
Comfort:
If you’re looking for a shoe that is comfortable, you can stop here. The Nike x Sacai Blazer Low isn’t. That being said, the shoe this is based on came out four decades ago. Hopefully this isn’t any surprise.
Underfoot, the shoe is hard. It has next to no padding at all. If you have not had a chance to try a blazer on before, it’s very similar to a pair of Vans. That also means there is no arch support. People must have been made of tougher stuff in the past because I couldn’t imagine playing a full game in a pair of shoes like this.
Further, because the half inch of rubber panels on the back of the shoe, these hit the ground sooner than you would expect. It’s not something I’ve felt in a sneaker before – the best way to describe it is like walking in a pair of boots with a block heel. Not the end of the world, but still something to know about.
Materials & Construction:
Materials:
The Nike x Sacai Blazer is a mixed bag when it comes to the materials that Nike used. There are a few materials that really knock it out of the park – the brown leather on the eyelets is very high quality and the exposed foam is the nicest I’ve ever seen on a pair of Nikes. At the same time, there is some truly awful stuff in here – the swooshes are made of fake leather that would make a Stacy Adams sneaker look good.
The red swoosh in particular is noticeable. They didn’t even bother to dye the edge of the panel, so there is a white felt outline.
Elsewhere, the shoe is about what you would expect. The suede is certainly good enough for a shoe in this price point, and the rubber on the mid and outsole should last a long time.
Construction:
This shoe uses a vulcanized rubber with foxing tape construction. We go into what that means here, but in short, these shoes are constructed by taking a hardened piece of rubber for the outsole and taping it to the upper with rubber tape.
This type of construction has been around for a long time. It’s great for feel, and cheap to construct, but tends to fail pretty early. They main failure points are the upper separating from the tape at the bend point, or the outsole separating at the heel. The Nike x Sacai Blazer Low seems to be especially susceptible to this, with reports saying it can happen in as few as 20 wears.
Ease of Care:
Taking care of the Nike x Sacai Blazer Low is mostly going to focus on keeping the suede clean and trying to prevent the upper from separating.
When it comes to the suede, I’d suggest spraying it down with some suede protectant before the first time you wear it. This will keep stains to a minimum. If they do get something spilled on them, protected shoes will be much easier to clean with a suede cleaner.
On separation, I’d strongly suggest using shoe trees in these sneakers. As you wear the shoes, they will start to curl around the bend point of the shoe. The shoe trees will get them back to their original shape and offer a much longer life for the shoe.
Pricing & Value:
The Nike x Sacai Blazer Low cost $120 new, and is now sold out. Thankfully, for those interested in the shoes, the resale on them is pretty reasonable. On eBay right now, you can find them for anywhere from $5 to $30 over retail, depending on sizing. StockX has them for even less, though after the fees you’ll end up paying more than you would on eBay.
From a value perspective, I think these are incredibly appealing. Sacai makes a lot of really interesting stuff on their own, but most of it is out of reach for the average person. The Nike x Sacai Blazer Low offers that Sacai styling at a price point that most people can afford – even at resale. Sure, the materials are not great, and there are some durability concerns, but if you’ve always wanted to try their style, this might be the most cost-effective way to do so.
Wrap Up:
The Nike x Sacai Blazer has a lot going for it. It offers high end styling at the price of a regular Nike at retail. The materials are definitely a letdown, but I doubt too many people interested in this shoe have that as their top priority. If you do, go check out New Balance.
If you’re interested in grabbing that look, these might be the best way to do it. Just be sure you don’t skip leg day.