PONY (1/2)
Really, I’ve just been trying to imagine what things must’ve been like in New York around 1972 and 1973, the year that both Nike and PONY launched (and also coincides with the year that my parents left New York for good)…
I was in New York for short vacations in the mid-80’s, 90’s, and lived there for most of the 00’s, so it’s one of those things I can just picture in my mind…but I absolutely really have no clue. Mostly because it’s kind of difficult for me to think of a place that was less about corporate sponsorship and businesses and marketing and more about the people of the city itself.
In my head, I see a lot of people just doing what people do. I don’t see *anyone* walking around worried about brands and I damn sure don’t see *anyone* lining up at stores for anything whatsoever. Hell, I don’t even see stores as we currently see them - instead of these chains of massive corporations, I see a whole bunch of mom and pops…providing products and services. Everyone has something different, because that’s how that stuff is.
And the thing is…I see it as just raw. And authentic. And more about what speaks to you (as opposed to what yells at you or figures out a way to weasel itself into your brain). In the 1970’s, sneakers are an afterthought. Clothing is not segregated by brand, but it’s segregated by look. Instead of ‘fast fashion,’ you just have ‘fashion.’ Instead of buying a new pair of shoes for every day of the year, you have a *single* pair of shoes you wear until you can’t wear them any more.
And so…thinking of this time and this place…PONY fits into that narrative. And it makes sense to me that PONY was one of the top athletic brands at the time. To me, it represents a snapshot of New York in the 70’s and 80’s and will always carry that weight.
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#pony50thanniversary #osdlive #ponym100