Foot Locker Brought the Heat With These Exclusive Releases in 2022
Asia-Pacific division continue to carve out their own blazing path in 2022. Pumping out collections across myriad brands and franchises, the APAC team have had their nose to the grindstone, conceptualising, designing and bringing to market some of the hottest releases this year. From the iconic ‘Tide’ to the 7 ‘Cherry Blossom’, these are ten of the top releases of 2022.
Nike Air Max Plus ‘Tide’
It’s no surprise that the Nike Tuned features predominantly. across Western Sydney and Melbourne in the early 2000s, the Asia-Pacific region continues to embrace Sean McDowell’s opus, with the TN ‘Tide’ once again bringing a swell of momentum to the silhouette.
One of the most beloved colourways in a flood of popular Aussie and NZ exclusive releases over the years, the idyllic TN ‘Tide’ originally washed up in 2014. Extolling all the beachside virtues of McDowell’s indelible Florida sunset, sneakerheads had to wait nearly a decade for the ‘Tide’ to hit shores once again.
And it was well worth the wait.
Replete with all the hallmarks of the OG, the model featured crisp white TPU ‘stripes’ and classic mesh uppers fading from blue to white – a perfect ‘spray-paint fade’ in Aussie terminology!
With the weather ready to scorch beaches and backyards this holiday season, expect to see the TN ‘Tide’ rise once again in our sneaker rotations!
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ASICS GEL-Quantum 360 7
The ASICS imprint are enjoying a steep come-up in 2022, and the GEL-Quantum 360 7 is certainly cementing itself as a lifestyle staple. The picture-perfect ‘Cherry Blossom’ was undoubtedly a benchmark for the model this year, with the design, of course, drawing inspiration from the Japanese cherry blossom – also known as a Japanese cherry or sakura.
Accented in hues of cyan and pink, the collection debuted in a duo of colourways, with true ASICS aficionados stunting one colourway on each foot!
Kawaī!
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Under Armour HOVR Phantom 2 ‘Warning Pack’
The brand continue to receive strong support from the Asia-Pacific region, with the HOVR Phantom 2 still a favourite among sneakerheads. Boasting some of the best cushioning in the highly competitive world of hardwood performance sneakers, the ‘Warning Pack’ was another slam dunk from the Foot Locker team, with the bold colourway initially introduced in March.
Taking aesthetic cues from toxic alerts and do not pass signs, there was no better way to send out a warning signal to your opponents on the court.
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Nike Air Max Plus ‘Sunburn’
Is there anything that says Aussie culture more than a red-raw sunburn? Debuting in 2015 at Foot Locker in Bankstown – a heartland for TN culture – the ‘Sunburn’ colourway was inspired by Australia’s harsh, unforgiving climate. Emblazoned in a mix of orange and yellow, there’s honestly no point applying lotion to this one – it’s scorching hot!
Another lynchpin of Foot Locker’s extensive Aussie and NZ exclusive catalogue, the ‘Sunburn’ was looked at enviously by TN-heads across the globe back in 2015 and again in 2022.
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Nike Air Max Plus ‘Turquoise/Black’
Look who reappeared in 2022!
You know exactly what you’re in store for when you see the luxurious, robin-egg blue colour. A cheeky allusion to one of the world’s famous jewellers, it’s not often the Air Max Plus visits the high street, but if this colourway is anything to go by, it definitely should more often.
Initially released in 2014, the rendition is still an icon from Foot Locker’s mighty Tuned archive, with the black and bold turquoise design capturing the attention of every TN-head in Australia.
Emboldened by eye-catching neon Swooshes, the ocean-like aesthetics were carried throughout the iconic seven Air bubbles – from which the revolutionary cushioning system derives its namesake.
Still, we’ll take Air Bubbles over engagement rings any day of the week!
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Foot Locker Korea ‘Block Party’ Colab Tees
Foot Locker found a way to show epic support to local Korean communities in 2022, with the Asia Pacific team throwing a block party across several major cities!
Hooking up with local rappers, designers and artists to turn the dial up a notch, Foot Locker even released their own limited-edition tees memorialising the event. Each tee received a unique city logo and was designed entirely by a local artist.
New Balance Women’s Exclusive Collection Featuring IU
For one of latest signings, Foot Locker tapped Korean superstar IU to dramatic effect this year. Putting her own spin on a silhouette that went supernova in 2022, the pink-and-purple New Balance was mighty pretty, and it was arguably one of Foot Locker’s most versatile colourways this year.
Of course, a vintage 1980s basketball sneaker resurrected in 2020 – the 550 has been one of the stunning success stories for New Balance.
Check out Foot Locker's extensive New Balance collection by hitting the button below.
Nike Air Max Plus ‘Kombat’
Foot Locker Australia’s DMs blew up when the ‘Kombat’ was released this year. Sneakerheads overseas were shattered that the blood-thirsty colourway hadn’t received a global release, but alas, no one flexes TNs like the island Down Under!
An obvious allusion to the legendary video game, this one was as cold as Sub-Zero’s ‘Ice Shower’.
Sean McDowell’s swaying Florida palm trees are often open to vast artistic interpretation among the throngs of TN-heads in Aus. And the ‘Kombat’ colourway certainly emphasised the angry veins sometimes attributed to the TPU cage.
The perfect colourway to celebrate the baddest member of Nike’s royal Air Max bloodline, the ‘Kombat’ release was a knockout.
As always, you can shop all the latest Nike Tuned at Foot Locker.
Under Armour HOVR Phantom 3 ‘Gravity’
The Under Armour HOVR Phantom has gone from strength to strength since its debut in 2018. With the help of Foot Locker, the model broke out from relative obscurity to become a staple of Under Armour’s performance and lifestyle categories.
Inspired by the zero-gravity feel of HOVR technology, the colourway launched alongside molten-hot, meteoric marketing, with the red-and-black design flying through space in its titular cushioning and Under Armour IntelliKnit technology.
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New Era 9Forty Hats
We all know that Foot Locker’s love of hoops runs deep. In fact, the sneaker giant will often drop exclusive caps to coincide with hyped retros throughout the year. From Chicago Bulls’ iconic red to the Brooklyn Nets, Foot Locker have been matching their Aframes with their sneakers for as long as games have been played at Madison Square Garden!
Shop all the hottest and exclusive releases from Foot Locker by hitting the button below!