Steve Pelletier the man behind some of the rarest Nike SB kicks
Behind big hits like Ben & Jerry’s Chunky Dunky collab and the Nike SB Dunk Low Grateful Dead, STEVE PELLETIER is also an enthusiast of dope cars. He works as a Senior Product Line Manager at Nike SB by day and just talked to Type7 Magazine 'bout details on the Grateful Dead collab.
“Man, this collab is a dream come true. It came to us through our sales rep in San Francisco, who knows some of the band management. He connected us, and we’re lucky enough to have a few Dead Heads in SB that got really excited about the project. We knew that our projects were going to garner some attention, but the response has been beyond what anyone anticipated," he told Type7.
The front and center of the NIKE SB DUNK LOW GRATEFUL DEAD had the most lovable icon of the band, the dancing bears, which first featured on the back cover of the 1973 LP Lore of the Grateful Dead, Volume 1 (Bear's Choice).
"We added a lot of special ‘hidden’ things to the shoes, like the lighting bolt lace tips for example. A true team effort helped it come to life - from design to development, to how the product was marketed, and we’re lucky enough in SB to have a rich heritage to pull from. We looked at the 3 Bears Dunks we did in the past and we knew that a Dancing Bear Grateful Dead pack of Dunks would take the idea of fuzzy bear shoes and bring it to an even higher level. So much fun!”
The sneakers have a base made of brightly colored suede and furry fleece, with the Swoosh and the outsole being equally bright and contrasting. A jagged rim features the Swoosh, replicating the cravats and ragged fur of the Bear's. Nike SB has included a stash pocket behind the tongue in line with the 420-friendly Dead Head philosophy.
Just like us, Steve is a big fan of timeless design and customizable goods. Besides being a sneakerhead, his ’86 Porsche 911 also takes a big space on his list of obsessions.
“The ’86 is my childhood dream – it’s my happy place, my escape – and I think I’ll own it forever. You know the old ‘poster on my wall’ story that many people have. Where I grew up in Maine you never saw anything that cool on the road and I remember freaking out when seeing 911s on trips to Boston in the '80s. It’s been a goal to own one my whole life. Fast forward 30 years, it's 2016, and I'm buying my 1986 3.2 coupe from a guy outside of Portland, Oregon that was getting divorced and needed quick cash. After a few weeks of negotiating, I was able to get the car and all the parts in his garage. It had over 200k on the odometer, so needless to say it needed work. I sold off the garage parts and stripped the car down to the chassis in my garage over the winter."
"Since I am a shoe collector, it’s only natural that I have a lot of wheels - the latest is a set of @rufsince1939 Speedlines. I like my wheels rare, like sneakers, and I have a couple sets of Fuchs, but I also own sets of Japanese wheels like SSR Formula Mesh and Work Equip 05s, which are pretty unique on a 911. I’ve never been one to go with the crowd and I like to mix it up, but it’s hard to imagine the car without the Rufs now!”
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