Few stores have shaped sneaker and streetwear culture as quietly as Union. It started in New York, became a home for a whole generation of brands and found its second life in Los Angeles. Today, Union LA is one of Nike and Jordan Brand's most trusted partners, and in October 2026 it is back on the Dunk Low with a new capsule called Natural Selection.
Updated October 2026
Union NYC
Union opened in 1989 on Spring Street in SoHo, New York. It was one of the first stores to focus on what we now call streetwear, mixing young American designers with imports from the UK and Japan. The three original owners were James Jebbia, Mary Anne Fusco and Eddie Cruz, and from there a whole family tree grew that connects Union, Stüssy, Supreme and Undefeated.
Union formed a close relationship with Shawn Stussy. In 1991, Eddie Cruz moved to Los Angeles and opened a shared space for both brands. James Jebbia went on to help run the Stüssy stores in New York and founded Supreme in 1994. In 2002, Cruz co-founded the sneaker boutique Undefeated with James Bond.
Chris Gibbs and Union LA
Chris Gibbs joined Union in New York in 1996, with the help of his then girlfriend and now wife Beth Birkett, who later founded Bephie's Beauty Supply. He worked closely with Mary Anne Fusco on the day-to-day running of the store.
When the New York store closed during the recession at the end of the 2000s, Eddie Cruz offered Gibbs the chance to take over the Los Angeles location. Union LA has been on South La Brea Avenue since 2004, and Chris and Beth have run it ever since. It is still one of the most respected stores in the city, both for what it stocks and for the brands it helps to build.
Union x Jordan Brand
Union's history with Nike goes back to the 2000s, but the store's biggest moment came with the Air Jordan 1 High in 2018. Inspired by vintage Jordans, the pairs look like two shoes stitched together, with a contrasting collar and exposed stitching. Gibbs has called them his favourite shoes and keeps several pairs on ice.
A run of Air Jordan 4s followed in 2020 and 2021, including 'Off Noir', 'Guava Ice', 'Taupe Haze' and 'Desert Moss'. In 2022, Union's 'Future is Now' capsule brought two Air Jordan 2s and a Crater Slide, built around the idea of worn-in, utilitarian clothing of the future.
Union x Nike: Dunk, Cortez and Field General
In 2022, Union dropped the Passport Pack of Dunk Lows in Pistachio, Court Purple and Argon, inspired by Gibbs' travels as a student and the Dunks he saw in different cities. A few months later came the Cortez, made for the shoe's 50th anniversary as a tribute to Los Angeles, with mixed canvas and suede uppers and Grind rubber soles. The campaign was directed by Beth Birkett.
Union LA from 2023 to 2026
Since then, Union has kept a steady pace. In 2023, Gibbs and Birkett brought Bephie's Beauty Supply onto the Air Jordan 1 High with 'The Summer of 96', and Union worked on the AJKO 1 Low. In 2024, the Nike Field General returned in Union colourways, followed by the Air Jordan 1 High 'Chicago/Shadow' in 2025.
In February 2026 came the biggest one yet: a three-way Air Jordan 1 High OG with Hiroshi Fujiwara's fragment design, in 'Varsity Red & Sport Royal', 'Black & White' and 'Sport Royal'. Read more in Get Ready for the Air Jordan 1 x Union LA x Fragment Design.
Now Union is back on the Dunk. The Natural Selection capsule of footwear and apparel releases on 30 October 2026, and the Union x Nike Dunk Low 'Bamboo' in olive suede with a collapsible heel follows on 6 November 2026.
Union LA on KLEKT
From a small SoHo store to one of Nike's most important partners, Union has always valued the history behind the clothes and shoes it makes. That is exactly why its pairs are so collected, and why every new release is worth watching.
Check out all Union on KLEKT
Images: Union Los Angeles / Nike
