By V.S. Santoni
NASHVILLE, TN — Air Max Day is March 26 and Melissa Watkins, Nashville-based fashion blogger Fabglance, is celebrating it with Nashville’s first ever Air Max Day party. Since 2008, Watkins has been using her blog, Fab Glance, to give people confidence and help them with their personal style. Watkins, a self-described introvert, faced an industry that didn’t look like her back when she started, but she insisted that space be made for her and people like her. For years, she made photo spreads with fellow sneaker heads to celebrate Air Max Day, but she wanted to use her skills to give back to the community. “I wanted a way of bringing the sneaker community in Nashville together under one of the most accessible sneakers Nike has ever created” she said.
Nike released the Air Max on March 26, 1978. The line experienced many incarnations throughout the years. According to a 1996 article in the Chicago Tribune, the Air Max 95, specifically, became so popular it led to a series of shoe muggings in Japan local authorities dubbed “Air Max hunting.” Watkins believes the brand’s legacy offers the perfect symbol around which to gather community. “Sneakers are very important. It’s one of the style pieces that link most of us together,” she relayed.
At the event, attendees can expect vendors from Black-owned businesses–something Watkins notes was important to her—among which they’ll find sellers of apparel, beauty products, and accessories. The event will also boast a panel called “The Gentrification of Sneaker Culture,” which will rally Nashville thought leaders for a mindful discussion on the state of the sneaker scene. Watkins also adds the event will sport music and local photographers to take advantage of the local scenery. “The location that we have is near this beautiful mural in East Nashville. So it just looks so dope with the time of day and all that.”
The Air Max Day Party will take place at 604 Gallatin Avenue on Sunday, March 26. It will run from 3-7 PM.
If you’d like more information about the Air Max Day Party you can follow them on Instagram @airmaxdayparty. You can find tickets for the Air Max Day Party at EventBrite.com.
You can also follow Melissa Watkins on Instagram and TikTok @fabglance and on Facebook @melissa.watkins2.
