[Update 18 Apr 2023] Nike and Kids of Immigrants recently made an Instagram post, announcing that the four pairs that were seen at the Black Market Flea—namely “Earth”, “Indigo Haze”, “Light Silver”, and “Dark Team Red”—are now set for their general releases. To note, they will come without the serial number on the midsole.

All four pairs will be dropping exclusively at Dover Street Market LA and London on 22 April.

A few days ago, twitter user @HORHEAD_Sales shared a post claiming that Nike sent him a wrong pair of shoes. While accidents do happen, this one in particular went viral. What came to this user’s doorstep was an unreleased pair of Air Max 1 ’86s, nicknamed the “Smokey Mauve”.

What’s even more special is that these also come with the “Big Bubble”, as detailed by the returning Nike Air Max 1 OG “Big Bubble” on Air Max Day.

Naturally, people started wondering what exactly the pair was, given that the SKU comes up with a negative search. It took a few days but there’s finally some reasoning behind the accidental appearance of the “Smokey Mauve”.

Created in conjunction with Kids of Immigrants, a Los Angeles label centered around aspects of community, love and positivity, the Nike Air Max 1 “Smokey Mauve”, alongside three other colorways, were gifted to Black Market Flea vendors at its most recent event on 26 March.

As posted on their Instagram, Kids of Immigrants crafted 1,986 pairs of the “Smokey Mauve”, reflecting the year in which the Air Max 1 was born. All four variations of them were numbered, which can be seen on the midsole right above the “Big Bubble”. True to its brand ethos, the LA-based label made sure to give these to their community first.

While it wasn’t apparent what the other three colorways were, glimpses of them flashed across the video. One came in a muted grey/black makeover. Another showed up with brown hues and intricate prints across the mudguard. While we can’t be certain for now, it does seem like the recently emerged Nike Air Max 1 ’86 “Indigo Haze” could be part of the collection too.

It’s not immediately clear if each of the four colorways of the Air Max 1 ’86 had 1,986 pairs, or if all of them added up to the aforementioned number. But it’s definitely amazing Nike and Kids of Immigrants teamed up to do something special for their communities, one that came without prior spotlights or mentions.

Stay tuned as we’ll bring you more information regarding the Kids of Immigrants x Nike Air Max 1 ’86 collection if there’s any new updates. Also, check out the Instagram post to get a better idea of what the Kids of Immigrants and Black Market Flea is all about.

In other sneaker-related news, check out the BODE x Nike Astro Grabber.