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An advertisement from the 2014 Nike Tech Pack collection.
What is Nike Tech Fleece?
Nike’s history is characterised by constant transformations, making its mark on contemporary sports and non-sports history. Since 1971, the year of its foundation, Nike has always strived to take sportswear to a higher level of performance, design, and technological innovation.
In 2005, Jarrett Reynolds and Michael Leon worked as designers for Nike apparel. Portland was not interested in the Nike Tech Fleece, or the concept behind the collection for that matter. Techwear wasn’t a trend yet, so Reynolds and Leon were able to work on it without any pressure and total freedom.
In fact, the Nike Tech Pack was their ‘night job’, a side-project they carried out independently for one purpose: to create ever lighter, more breathable, and more solid sportswear products. From then on, sportswear and lifestyle would be one growing cluster in street culture, mixing the most advanced technologies with the versatility of sportswear.
When was the Nike Tech Pack first released?
Nike Tech Pack 2007, Windrunner Jacket
Nike released the Tech Pack for the first time in 2007, two years after Reynolds and Leon’s first concept, with a collection for those who like comfort and everyday use of the tracksuit. In fact, technical fleece sweatshirts, trousers, pocket tees, track jackets, and, the most important piece, a Windrunner jacket were released, using no sow technology, in which the fabric is sealed together with ultrasonic waves to avoid raw edge marks.
A few months later, the M65 Jacket was also released, a military-inspired garment consisting of a tough, breathable, and water-resistant 100% nylon shell and a Nike Dri-fit cotton/polyester lining. At the time, the Nike Tech full-zip sweatpants with fleece hood were still a basic garment and only meant for sport. But with the evolution of streetwear, towards an increasingly technical and performance approach, and thanks again to the explosion of rap phenomena such as trap and drill, it would become the best-selling piece in the entire collection.
How much does a Nike Tech Fleece full-zip tracksuit cost?
The full-length zip hoodie costs 119 euros and the matching trousers 99 euros, both average retail prices. Often, finding the right size becomes very difficult, given its popularity, especially among younger people. On Stockx, the price range for the Nike fleece zip hoodies varies from 105 to 160 euros, while the tracksuits are between 98 and 180 euros.
One of the most desired colourways for the Nike Tech Fleece tracksuit is grey, after black. (via @drillmarket)
The success of the Nike Tech Fleece tracksuit in the modern street scene
Here, British rapper Central Cee in a full-zip hoodie and trousers from the Nike Tech Fleece collection (Central Cee via Instagram)
Here, British rapper Central Cee in a full-zip hoodie and trousers from the Nike Tech Fleece collection (Central Cee via Instagram)
Here, British rapper Central Cee in a full-zip hoodie and trousers from the Nike Tech Fleece collection (Central Cee via Instagram)
In more than 50 years of existence, Nike has established itself as the main catalyst for global trends. Again, it has not failed.
The Nike Tech Pack, after 15 years of being released, remains one of the best-sellers of the Portland-based company. The right mix of sports innovation and lifestyle has highlighted Nike’s trend-setting philosophy, a constantly innovative laboratory.
“We have a strong vision for Nike apparel: to be a leader in innovation that makes athletes better, pushing both performance and style to the limit,” says Kurt Parker, Vice President of Apparel Design at Nike. “Through new manufacturing technologies and materials, we are driving a bold future where everything is designed with movement in mind.”
At the same speed with which Nike develops its creations, on a technological level, they become icons in the streets. The Tech Fleece tracksuit has blown up in recent years among younger rappers and influencers with a large following. As a result, Nike’s global image has automatically connected to increasingly entrenched street culture and its tracksuit has become a status symbol, capable of evoking messages of hardship, rebellion against the standards imposed by modern society, and a sense of community.
For example, in the latest video clip New York rappers Rowdy Rebel and Fivio Foreign, both wear a full black Nike Tech Fleece suit while staging a bank robbery. They show money, power, and nice cars, but without fancy clothes and sticking to the street style. A simple two-piece tracksuit becomes the symbol of a new generation.
In today’s age, the Nike Tech Fleece suit identifies you, for better or worse, for whatever you want to be. Jarrett Reynolds himself says so in an interview: “We know how people wear [Nike] apparel and shoes, often for the purpose they were designed for – running – other times for everything else. If this collection inspires a girl who’s never run before to go out and start running, great. If she wears it to go clubbing and looks good, that’s just as good.”
