Nike once again finds a new way to add a twist to obtaining its most coveted drops, this time with the Off-White Air Max 97 Elemental Rose “Queen” silhouette launched as part of a capsule celebrating Serena Williams’ 18th U.S. Open appearance.
Yesterday (August 27, 2018), Nike re-released the “Queen” shoe on its SNKRS app using an unannounced launch aka a shock drop.
Sized from women’s 5.5-15.5, the shoe first popped up in the evening yesterday on Nike’s SNKRS app where it was featured in the app’s “Behind the Design” section. Around the start of Williams’ first U.S. Open match, which began at 7:00 PM EST, the shoe became available on the app but remained located in the “Behind the Design” section of the app.
In order to purchase the shoe, the buyer first was required to scratch/rub an image of the shoe’s blank Off-White zip tie to reveal the copy. If properly executed, a video featuring Williams and Virgil Abloh was shown, followed by access to purchase the shoe.
While sneaker fans find Nike’s scavenger hunt methods infuriating, at the same time they’ve been effective in thwarting bot users.
The shoe was first released on August 20th on the SNKRS app but was only available to individuals located in New York City. Off-White, Kith and Dover Street Market’s New York locations also had a very limited number of pairs, which were available through a raffle system.
Priced at $190, the shoe is now reselling on StockX for a starting price of $1,000.
Note that the capsule also includes a Nike x Off-White Blazer Mid, which hasn’t dropped yet. [Update: the Blazer dropped shortly after 11:00 AM EST on October 25th.]
On top of the launch, Nike also released a new ad featuring Williams and her father that you can check out here.
Check out images of the Nike Air Max 97 x Off-White Elemental Rose “Queen” below.
