Vintage Nike & Nike 90s Clothing - Vintage clothing from the past

The sports brand Nike - a David versus Goliath story in the sports segment. In the 1960s, the young student Phil Knight had a vision: he wanted to bring cheap and good sports shoes to the market. Initially, a trading business with sports shoes from another manufacturer - Onitsuka Tiger today Asics - was built up via the company Blue Ribbon Sports.

Then there is a disagreement with the supplier and a new sports brand is born in the early 1970s: Nike. Of course, Nike's success today was not foreseeable back then. It all started with a small budget, lots of running-crazy helpers, Phil Knight and his trainer Bill Bowerman. Phil took over the commercial side and Bill the product development. The Nike classic, the Cortez shoe, is also his responsibility. Incidentally, the two of them did not come up with the name Nike themselves, that was their first employee Jeff Johnson.

Vintage Nike - you can't get past this brand

Which word is searched for the most in our shop search? Nike. Which second-hand brand has the highest search volume? Vintage Nike. And what sells out first when we drop new clothes? Vintage pieces by Nike. As you can see, nobody can ignore this brand in the second-hand and vintage sector.

Why is that? On the one hand, Nike stands for the small sports brand that has prevailed against the big Puma and adidas . A certain rebel status is certainly not wrong. On the other hand, the brand has become an integral part of popular culture. What is Joey Tribbiani wearing in the cult series Friends? With great preference Nike shoes and Nike sweatshirts. Which shoes did basketball legend Michael Jordan have to pay a $5,000 USD penalty for every NBA attack? Nike Air Jordans.

Which sports brand do the world's star designers like Virgil Abloh (Off White, Louis Vuitton) or Jerry Lorenzo (Fear of God) choose for their designs? Nike again. Whether you want vintage Nike for fashion reasons, sporting reasons, because of series stars or your own personal choice. Nike is the brand that no one can ignore.

The Nike slogan: Just do it!

In the end, the slogan can be applied to many things in life. Don't talk long, just do it. This attitude has definitely helped us at Zeitgeist. If that doesn't excite you, then the Nike athletes it's dedicated to will. Because they trust Nike shoes and Nike clothing. What could be cooler than a vintage Nike piece from your favorite athlete. In the case of Michael Jordan, his shoes definitely command top prices.

Particularly interesting, while Nike continuously delivers innovations in the shoe market, such as the legendary Air System, self-lacing shoes or the futuristic designs of Nike Mag, the fashion is often relatively basic and compared to what many other sports and functional wear manufacturers are, relative simple in the choice of colors and branding. So we have a great selection of vintage Nike jackets, Nike sweatshirts and vintage Nike hoodies.

Nike also stands for iconic vintage styles

Of course, you always think of the shoes first, but behind Nike there is much more to vintage and second-hand dealers. Because vintage Nike gets a lot of hype. This is because a clear value proposition, the often minimal branding and the great quality of the cotton products of this time come together. If you don't know what to wear, you can't go wrong with a Nike vintage key piece or two.

The beautiful thing about Nike that accompanies entire generations is that it not only appeals to our generations but can also serve as a great conversation starter for older semesters. Be that as it may, with your vintage Nike outfit you've come a little closer to fashion Olympus.

Also discover at Zeitgeist Vintage:

Nike sweatshirts Nike hoodies Nike jackets

Nike T-Shirts Nike Joggers Nike Accessories

Best quality. Sporty flair. Delivered sustainably to you - experience vintage Nike!

Best quality, since mixtures of substances from the 80s and 90s are offered that are no longer manufactured in this way. Sporty flair is guaranteed with Nike Vintage anyway , because who can do that better than them. And best of all, unlike conventional fashion purchases, you don't have to have a bad conscience. The largest part of the footprint falls on the production and this is indirectly boosted by vintage & second-hand. So grab it: We have vintage Nike for you.

What does the name Nike mean?

Nike is a Greek word and means something like 'victory' in German. At the same time, Nike is also the name of the winged goddess of victory from Greek mythology. Of course, the choice of this name for a sports label is no coincidence , because where there is sport, as is well known, victories are not far away. Team victories as well as individual ones. Victories in sporting competitions, victories against time and, of course, victories against the personal, inner weaker self.

What does the Nike logo stand for - the Swoosh?

Honestly, the word swoosh is one of the most searched special words in our shop. Quite an achievement considering a brand has managed to popularize their logo's proper name. The Center Swoosh is particularly popular, i.e. placing the logo in the middle of the chest.

We recommend the Swoosh as a stick or patch, simply because it lasts forever, unlike a logo print. The Nike brand's 'swoosh' logo is designed by Carolyne Davidson. There was also a small scandal, because the student was “only” paid $35 for her creation.

Ultimately, however, she was hired by Nike, given her own gold Swoosh ring and a stock package that is worth around $2.4 million as of today in 2018 . So sometimes it pays to be patient. The logo was originally intended to represent the wings of Nike, the goddess of victory, but the story of the volume sequence of a passing runner is also represented.

It is also interesting that the original Nike logo from 1971 still comes with the lettering “Nike”. Today, the logo without the lettering is enough to let us know it's vintage Nike.

How do you actually pronounce “Nike” or “Swoosh”?

In Germany we sometimes have the habit of pronouncing foreign language marks in our own way. That's how many say "Neik" in this country, i.e. without an i-sound at the end, which the English "e" suggests. Who can tell us if this is correct? The founders themselves, of course. There is a nice anecdote in which two students write a letter to Phil Knight asking just that: “Mr. Knight, is it “Neik” or “Neiki”?” This answers the question once and for all. It's called Neiki. It's easier with the Swoosh, which is undeniably pronounced "Zwuusch".

Who popularized vintage Nike?

The very first strong advocate for Nike was Bill Bowerman through his own reputation as the USA Olympics coach. Also, count Jeff Johnson as Nike's first employee, namesake, and staunch advocate for greater advertising effectiveness around Nike.

Because, and the Nike founder is transparent about this in his autobiography, Phil Knight didn't think much of expensive sponsorship, advertising and everything else . He wanted to sell the shoes directly. He certainly realized later that he was wrong. The first influencer - even if you didn't say it that way back then - was Steve Prefontaine, an American running ace who can look back on an enormous base of fans. His early accidental death is a tragedy for the sport and his friends, but it also makes Prefontaine a hero - in vintage Nike format.

Later there are many athletes, but hardly anyone will open such large customer segments for Nike as we have Michael Jordan in basketball and Tiger Woods in golf, even if many other Nike athletes like Serena Williams or Rafael Nadal in tennis, Christina Ronaldo in soccer or Kevin Durant or LeBron James in basketball.

Which Nike key pieces are there?

Nike Sweatshirts - We know it, when it comes to vintage clothing, there's almost nothing better than a sweatshirt with a classy Swoosh embroidery. Therefore we are always looking to bring these parts to the shop for you.

Nike Joggers - Joggers with embroidered logos have become rare. Most of them are no longer about cotton, but polyester with logo prints. With us you will also find the cotton stick swooshes.

Nike jackets - who doesn't want to look like the coach on the sidelines? All other looks are also possible with vintage jackets , if Nike is one of your favorite brands, then grab one.

Nike Hoodies - similar to the sweatshirts but cozy with a hood, we're known for vintage hoodies and not without reason. Get your hoodie at Zeitgeist.

Nike T-shirts - you wear it all the time, whether under a sweatshirt or on its own, the t-shirt is always with you. Preferably with the Vintage Nike logo.

Nike accessories - we also offer neck pouches, backpacks and even jewelry, grab them quickly, Nike accessories are quickly sold out

Are there specific Nike Vintage Drops?

We regularly bring sweatshirts to our vintage shop. We don't have any fixed brand drops, but Nike Branded Vintage & Secondhand sweatshirts and hoodies always have a share of your favorite brand. At the same time, you will find the most unusual pieces from Nike, such as rare pullovers, old sweatpants, etc., some of which are not found in the bestseller categories. If you can't get the retro Air Jordans in the Nike SNKR app, we recommend going to your local vintage shop, with luck you'll find the shoes there in real old.

What's the deal with the Nike vintage labels?

The nice thing about vintage pieces from Nike is the standardized labeling. This enables connoisseurs like us to check the authenticity of the garments and to assign them to specific decades.

We have already dedicated an episode of Pauly's Vintage Corner to this topic, which you can find on our Instagram. At the same time we are writing a label guide that will be published in the near future.

Nike sponsorship - who does Nike actually sponsor?

Recently, Nike signed its first athlete with cerebral palsy , Justin Gallegos of the University of Oregon was caught by surprise in a team race. A beautiful moment that you can find recorded here. Besides Justin Gallegos, which inspirational people made Nike famous?

As the world market leader, the list of Nike-sponsored athletes is of course long, but ultimately it's not just the athletes themselves, but also clubs, national teams and even entire leagues such as the Champions League. This also includes the American football league NFL and the basketball teams of the NBA.