There are many collectors of air Jordan's and they have their own way of identifying the shoes, OG means that they are original, and then you have Retro, Retro+'s and samples.
So let me tell you the Air Jordan story starting with Air Jordan 1.
They were designed by Peter Moore and were first released in 1985, they are a masterpiece in basketball shoe design, although changed later on, the design still excites many today, originally in black and red.
Many other shoe companies tried to copy the design and helped make Air Jordan's what they are now.
Your original Air Jordan's came with a set of laces to match the colour scheme of your shoe, usually two sets per pair in red and black.
Eventually 23 different colour designs were made, although selling very well they were retroed in 1994 as the sales were very poor.
Many went in sales at rock bottom prices.
They were retored again in 2001 and were selling out too fast for the shops to keep up with.
Air Jordan IV.
Released in 1989 this was not such a hit as its three predecessors but it was the first Jordan shoe to hit the worldwide market.
Its cushioned sole and smart design made it a best seller.
In the Ad campaign for the Jordan III they had the help of Spike Lee, he made the immortal can/can't TV commercial and also used the shoe in his film 'Do the right thing'.
The shoe was retroed in 1999 with two colour schemes, white/black and black/cement.
The IV's sold out totally in hours, but when they released Retro+ many observers said they had totally destroyed a classic.
The original Air Jordan IV has the Nike Air logo whilst its counterpart the Retro+ has the Jumpman logo.
Retro Packages.
Retro packages were released in 2006, which included 'Mars Black Mons', ('Laser Red' IV's with Spike Lee's alter ego on the heel), 'Military Blues' and the 'Thunder & Lightning' package, following this, he had the Air Jordan V, Air Jordan VI, Air Jordan VII and VIII.
The Air Jordan IX, X, XI, XII, XIII were followed very successfully by the XIV, XV, XVI, XVII, XVIII, XVX and the XX.
Bringing us to the XXI released on February 18th 2006.
The Air Jordan XXI.
Is released in White/Black and Red colour scheme used during the NBA All Star weekend.
The Red/Black was released on February 25th 2006 where you could choose to have suede colour way for a few extra dollars.
Inspired by the highest and lowest cut Jordan's and Bentley inspired the grill for its side vents, with replaceable pods you can change from Zoom Air to Air Sole making them personal to you.
