Pay a visit to the M Den website and you’ll be greeted with a countdown clock to Aug. 1, the first day Michigan’s apparel contract with Nike begins.
Pay a visit to the M Den warehouse and you’ll find that most Adidas products have already been moved to make room for the scores of boxes containing the newest Nike gear.
Out with the old and in with the new, as they say.
Wednesday, the M Den hosted several members of the media to discuss the store’s upcoming release of Michigan-themed Nike apparel as well as provide a preview of various products.
The M Den has been planning its launch of the new gear for over a year now, according to Scott Hirth, the co-owner of M Den.
It will begin a week-long product release next week, starting with an extravagant midnight release on July 31.
According to Hirth, State Street will be blocked off between Williams and Liberty from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. to accommodate the large amount of consumers that is currently anticipated. There will be a roll-out party that will include 60 members of the Michigan marching band, members of the dance team, special guest appearances and a DJ.
Most of the fall line of products will be unveiled at the midnight release with the exception of the football jerseys. Michigan’s agreement with Nike includes a stipulation that calls for the football and both men’s and women’s basketball teams to be outfitted by Jordan Brand, a division of Nike characterized by the famous Jumpman icon in place of the Nike Swoosh.
Instead, the football jerseys will be unveiled separately on Aug. 2 at the M Den located on State Street in a ceremony open only by invitation. In addition to the reveal of the football jersey, the Aug. 2 event will also present the new Michigan-themed shoe designed by Jordan Brand, dubbed the Air Jordan Trainer 1.
The jerseys and Air Jordan Trainer 1 will then be made available to the public on Aug. 6. The jersey will be available at all M Den locations while the shoe will be available at just the State Street location and on the M Den website — which, according to Hirth, has been recently beefed up to deal with the flood of visitors expected during the launch week.
Hirth believes that, even though a large order was placed, the shoe will be one of their quickest selling items and will most likely sell out in a brief period of time.
This is a developing story. Stay with michigandaily.com for updates.