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On Saturday, American sportswear giant Nike launched its latest sneaker in collaboration with Paris-based creative collective Air Afrique in West Africa’s Côte d’Ivoire, setting a new precedent for sneaker drops worldwide.
This marks the first time Nike has ever released a sneaker in Africa before rolling it out globally. “We are constantly challenging ourselves to reimagine the rules of the game for tomorrow, [to] explore new alleys in culture resonating with youth and find new ways of doing [so],” Nike’s energy marketing director Pia Hazoume tells Vogue Business. Hazoume joined the company in 2022, and is responsible for spearheading projects within the cultural ecosystem, including creative experiences with artists and designers, as well as product collaborations such as Nike x Air Afrique.
The new sneaker, called the RK61, is a dress shoe that sits somewhere between a loafer and a sneaker, featuring Nike’s iconic Air technology, as seen on popular models such as the Air Max.
Experimental in design, the shoe also pays homage to Air Afrique’s history — the now-defunct Pan-African airline was a popular mode of transport during the ’60s and ’70s, taking passengers between several African cities. Design details nod to Air Afrique’s aviation history, including an Air Max unit inspired by a jet engine, Morse code spelling “Air Afrique” on the outsole, a zipper with the airline’s original logo, and a jacquard sock liner inspired by the aircraft seats. The sneaker will retail for $210 across all markets.
Leading fashion and sportswear brands cannot ignore the power and influence of African creatives in the diaspora, as they present a unique opportunity to speak to communities on and off the continent. “The new generation [and] cultural scene in West Africa is booming,” says Hazoume. “This collaboration was born as an acknowledgement of the shared African influences among many emerging creatives and athletes today, in Paris and beyond… It was natural for us that the starting point of this global story had to be on the African continent, in the city where the original airline’s headquarters were located.”
Beyond fashion, several influential figures from the continent are shaping the global creative economy, including Afrobeats sensation Burna Boy and athletes like Didier Drogba, an Ivorian professional footballer, who also features in the Nike x Air Afrique campaign. Their popularity is a signal to the international market that there’s a rich pool of stars who have the power to connect continents and consumers in each region. Brands are able to leverage the loyal fan bases of these creatives and build cultural relevance, particularly in emerging markets like Africa, where brands have historically had a limited presence.
As music from the continent continues to dominate charts and streaming platforms, more partnerships with luxury are emerging. Brands are advised to get in there early.
Air Afrique, which launched in 2021 and is based in Paris, is made up of four creatives: Lamine Diaoune, Djiby Kebe, Jeremy Konko and Ahmadou-Bamba Thiam. The multidisciplinary platform uses art and culture as a bridge to connect communities through shared memories, creativity, human interconnection and Afro-diasporic nostalgia. Air Afrique has worked with several luxury giants including Bottega Veneta and Louis Vuitton, the latter of which it co-created logos for its Spring/Summer 2025 show.
For Nike, this is an opportunity to change the game when it comes to sports marketing, by tapping the Paris-based collective to bring a “fresh perspective on sport and storytelling”, says Leo Sandino-Taylor, Nike’s VP of global energy marketing. Together, they’re transporting consumers back in time to tell a unique story of luxury travel via Air Afrique, which conjures up feelings of nostalgia and patriotism for many Afro-diasporic communities. “Air Afrique’s storytelling and insight, combined with our design and innovation prowess, have created something completely unique,” Sandino-Taylor adds.
This is evident in both the sneaker design and the campaign, which is shot on a plane and features footballer Drogba seated next to a young boy conversing on their flight back home to Côte d’Ivoire, wearing the newly launched shoe. “The Air Afrique airline was created out of the ambition to connect the African continent and its diaspora wherever it is in the world. Debuting the launch in Abidjan [the largest city in Côte d’Ivoire] is an organic perpetuation of this spirit,” says Air Afrique’s Thiam. “Having moments where we bring people together through cultural exchanges is also perpetuating the original spirit of ambitious dreams… And of course, we are thrilled to be able to come in-person [and] hand a pair to Didier Drogba.”
The Abidjan drop
On 27 September, Nike and Air Afrique headed to Abidjan to unveil the sneaker at the city’s Blu Lab concept store. Since its inception in 2024, the retailer has quickly become a third space for the local streetwear and sports crowd, often hosting basketball competitions, live music events and a co-working space. Its community now consists of over 15,000 people, according to Blu Lab. The sneaker launches 9 October worldwide.
For Nike, Air Afrique and Blu Lab, the Abidjan drop was a joint success, as the sneaker quickly sold upon launch. Pilots, stewards and children of former Air Afrique employees also came along to support the launch. “I’m so happy that sneaker culture is starting to gain some ground in Côte d’Ivoire. I saw people running, asking for even a size smaller than theirs just to get their hands on a pair,” says photographer, designer and known sneakerhead Wilfried Sant’Anna. “Seeing my country, Côte d’Ivoire, for the first time in Africa, launch a Nike [sneaker] that honours the cultural heritage of Air Afrique — there’s definitely something to be proud of.”
By tapping Blu Lab as its retail partner, Nike is offering the store’s consumers direct access to the sneaker before the rest of the world, something many locals haven’t experienced previously. “When you have a good sneaker collaboration, it’s always complicated to get it [in Africa],” says Blu Lab founder Gaston Ouedraogo. With this partnership, consumers no longer have to rely on their friends or overseas networks to bring a limited-edition sneaker into Africa, he adds.
Prior to the launch, consumers on the continent would spend nearly double the original cost of the sneaker just trying to get the goods into the country, Ouedraogo says, noting that shipping costs and import duties can significantly hike the price. “This is the first time they’ll [consumers in Abidjan] get to experience a real sneaker launch,” he says.
The launch will mirror buzzy sneaker drops seen in Europe and the US, featuring live DJs, canapés and strategic merchandising in line with the Nike brand. This model could serve as a blueprint for future collaborations, showing leading sportswear giants what’s possible when prioritising African consumers, Ouedraogo says. It also allows Nike to take a less cautious approach to activations in the continent, as it can lean on the expertise and knowledge of experienced retailers such as Blu Lab. Consumers will be able to purchase the sneaker using popular payment methods such as mobile money platforms Orange Money and Wave, before rolling out to other African countries.
The American sportswear behemoth is not unfamiliar with the African market. In fact, this collaboration marks a continuation of Nike activations in West Africa. Earlier this year, Nike teamed up with Ghanaian streetwear brand Free the Youth on a Jordan campaign, celebrating 40 years of the basketball line. The campaign was shot in London as well as Accra and Tema, two popular coastal cities in Ghana, and guests were invited to a launch event in the British capital. With the Air Afrique collaboration, Nike is providing local consumers with a direct sales channel to purchase its latest sneaker before it’s available in any other market. The short campaign featuring Drogba has generated significant buzz on social media, racking up over 2.6 million views on Instagram. “When people feel connected to what they’re seeing, it’s easier for them to understand the story and to sell them [a product], because retail is all about emotion,” says Ouedraogo.
This could set the tone for future sneaker collaborations. “If this collaboration goes really well, we will say to the world that the African continent is ready; Abidjan is ready to receive more sneakers, more collaborations, because there is a need and a demand for it,” he says.
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