Jayson Tatum has been on top of the world over the past 12 months, winning his first NBA title with the Celtics in June and a gold medal with the U.S. Olympic basketball team in Paris in August. So what better time for Boston sneaker boutique CNCPTS to have a special, exclusive two-pack for Tatum’s third signature sneaker with Jordan Brand.
Dubbed “Welcome to the Garden,” this special two-pack represents the debut of Tatum’s third signature sneaker and is paired with the Air Jordan 1 Low OG. The sneaker two-pack dropped via raffle on the CNCPTS website, with pickup available on October 5, but I was able to get a look at pair here in Boston on Thursday as well get a chance to talk with CNCPTS creative director Deon Point about the collaboration.
Deon has in the past has talked about his own connection to the Air Jordan 1 and obviously has deep ties to Boston, being a native of nearby Brockton. So how cool was it for him to help spearhead this collaboration on not only one of his favorite sneakers but with a Boston athlete and champion, no less?
“We’ve had a great relationship with Tatum, I’ve known him since his rookie year. Seeing his trajectory and what he’s managed to accomplish, I mean, I don’t think anybody has had a better year than him,” Deon said. “So to kind of top it off with this collaboration pack, having his performance shoe, which is probably the best one yet, and coupling it with the Jordan 1, which is a lot of people’s favorite, it’s just amazing.
“Kudos to the Jordan team because they really turned it around rather quickly…I love the look and feel of it and what it means and I think to be able to have a lifestyle shoe adjacent to the performance (shoe) is just the best of both worlds.”
Traditionally, when brands are developing a sneaker, especially a signature shoe for a marquee athlete, the design process is several years long. Famously, Tinker Hatfield designed the famed Air Jordan 11 while MJ was still playing baseball and a time when many within Nike thought the line was over. So with that in mind, how much time did Deon and the CNCPTS team have to ideate this special collaboration? Deon said with their normal, in-depth design ideas it usually takes quite a bit of time, but in this instance the Jordan Brand team was pretty agile. He said Jordan Brand reached out about eight months ago, obviously before the Celtics’ title run, and the sides went back and forth on a couple of items, such as the name for the pack.
Deon couldn’t reveal how many pairs were produced, although he did say it was one of the brand’s more exclusive collaborations to date. He said the goal was just genuinely for the people who really wanted it to be able to get their hands on it, which he hopes is what happened after the raffle on the CNCPTS website.
Getting back to the sneakers, one of the things that strikes you right away with the collab is the packaging.
CNCPTS has long been known for their superior packaging, attention to details and how it all ties into the storytelling they’re trying to engage in. And that is all very intentional.
“We pride ourselves on being probably the kings of packaging within our respective space,” Deon said. “The Jordan Brand team came up with the dual pack, which I love it. It’s just a lot easier than some of the past packs, which are extremely difficult to break apart, and adding the floral aspect to it really brought it to life.”
CNCPTS says the the “Welcome to the Garden” pack showcases the growth in all areas of Tatum’s life “in a floral pattern that nods to his home and personal garden, where he’s surrounded by family, friends and loved ones.” And obviously, the name has double meaning given that Tatum plays his home games at the TD Garden, which itself pays homage to the old Boston Garden. So the name has multiple meanings.
“You know, there’s Welcome to the Garden, you touched on it, TD Garden, even Boston Garden to some extent…And it pays respect to his growth as a player, as a father and as a son,” Deon said. “I just love everything it stands for. They did a really killer job on this.”
This, of course, isn’t CNCPTS first time collaborating with a sneaker brand, Of course they have multiple noteworthy collabs with New Balance, from the 998 C-Notes to the 999 SEALs, as well as with Nike on various Kyrie models. Not to mention the legendary Nike SB Lobsters that CNCPTS is famous for in colors such as Green, Blue, Red, Purple and Orange. So how different was it, if it was at all, working with Jordan Brand?
“They’re all different, they all have different approaches and things like that,” Deon said. “With Kyrie, it’s funny, my first shoot with him, he didn’t see it until we were doing a live episode on air and he was kind of critiquing on the spot and I was like ‘Oh my God, the shoe is done, man’ (laughs). He was amazing to work with, Nike SB is probably the funnest in the business and I think Jordan, you know, they’re such a massive company. To be able to do something so quick, and so focused and dialed in like this is really an anomaly, it doesn’t happen often. That just shows the tremendous respect they have for Tatum and what he’s accomplished here.”
Deon says getting to work with all of these massive companies and collaborators has been a blessing. He points out that he’s a kid from humble beginnings in Brockton, Mass., and now he’s getting to work with athletes, celebrities and brands, getting opportunities that he could only dream of as a kid. He’s still in shock, that with no background or design he’s been able to rise to this point. He just had an affinity for sneakers and was able to turn it into a career. And he says he’s thankful for it every day.
“You know, I’m incredibly proud of our team and I think we just every day approach it like, ‘Wow, this is insane,'” Deon said. “We’ve probably done maybe 200-plus at this point collaborations. But everyone we treat it like it is the first one. I say that quite often, but it’s kind of the way I keep it in the back of my mind.
“It’s amazing, man. It’s the best job in the world,” Deon said. “I love all those companies individually and you know, everyone’s different and it’s just super exciting.”
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