Niketown New York

Profile

“If you have a body, you’re an athlete,” reads a quote at the Nike flagship, and track coach Bill Bowerman’s words underscore the company’s target demographic: everyone. Whether you’re a weekend warrior or someone more committed—like Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods, two notable brand spokespersons—Niketown wants to outfit your sporting life. The first four of the building’s five floors are dedicated to shirts, sneakers, sweats, and sportswear plastered with the trademark swoosh. Specialty items aren’t limited to kicks endorsed by NBA stars like LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony or team-specific jerseys for European soccer and the American Dream Team but extend to running shoes with accompanying iPods that track your mileage. (The stock is strictly apparel, so you won’t find anything from the company’s extensive equipment lines.) The top level, though, offers a change of scenery and stock. Forgoing the clean white environs elsewhere, the fifth floor goes rustic with exposed brick and vents while the clothing line gets a little more fashion-oriented: knit shirts, vests, and sneakers that are meant for style, not for sweat.

 
— Joe DeLessio