Jordan 1 Retro Chicago Bulls Patent (2003)

In 2003 the Air Jordan 1 Retro "Chicago Bulls" received a patent leather finish that the AJ1 had never seen before. Outside of the Air Jordan 11, patent leather can be a "make or break" feature for sneakers. Sometimes, it’s a home run, and other times it’s straight to the sales rack. Thinking back to 2003, there was a lot of flashiness going on in basketball, in hip hop, and just in general fashion. So the fact that Jordan Brand released patent leather colorways on the Jordan 1 Mid, means they were paying attention to the trends. Whether those trends are worth following, in hindsight, is debatable. What will never go out of style, is the Air Jordan 1 "Chicago Bulls" colorway. The Chicago AJ1 could be considered the most important sneaker of all time. After all, you wouldn’t be looking at a "Stock Market of Sneakers" if it weren’t for the success of Michael Jordan and his signature Air Jordan shoes. In 2003, however, the patent leather AJ1 series took a detour from the originals with a lower than normal "mid" cut and the Nike Air branding swapped out for the Jumpman logo on the tongue. The Air Jordan 1 Retro "Chicago Bulls" in patent leather still featured the most important details, the "White/Varsity Red-Black colorway that made the world take notice of Air Jordan sneakers.