Nike SB Dunk High Carpet Company

A High wants your trousers to acknowledge it. Wear it with baggy jeans stacked over the collar so only the toe and Swoosh show, a boxy tee and a hoodie, which is the native way to wear this shoe. For the opposite read, cuff slim black trousers just above the collar and pair with a plain black knit, letting the full silhouette stand up. It is built for skating and for long days on hard ground, and the padded ankle makes it warmer than a Low, so it is a better cold weather pick. Fits true to size. Brush suede dry, treat leather panels with a damp cloth and conditioner, and rotate pairs, because a skate build lives longest when it dries out fully between wears.

Nike SB's authority in skateboarding was earned through partnerships, not advertising, and the programme knows how badly that can go: its 2005 use of Minor Threat's album art drew a public rebuke from Ian MacKaye and an apology from Nike. Since then the collaborations that matter most have been with people inside the culture rather than adjacent to it. That is the frame for a Carpet Company Dunk High. Nike's broader street presence came from basketball, the 1984 Michael Jordan signing and the Spike Lee directed Mars Blackmon campaigns, which made Air Jordans and Air Force 1s hip hop staples. The SB line is the part of the house that has to keep proving itself locally.

The High build extends the collar over the ankle and pads it heavily, which on a skate specific Dunk matters more than it does on a lifestyle pair, because that padding is absorbing repeat landings. Underneath the sockliner sits Zoom Air, Nike's cushioning applied where the foot lands rather than displayed through a window. The upper mixes leather and suede so the panels take scuffing differently, and the flat rubber outsole keeps board feel high and the stack low. The lacing runs long, so you can tighten the ankle down hard or leave the top eyelets open and let the collar flop, which is how most people actually wear a Dunk High. Fits true, snug at first.