We’ve all had that conversation; talking to a non-sneakerhead, seeing the confused look on their face as you talk about sneakers with terrific abandon. people collect baseball cards, stamps, happy meal Toys, but why can’t people get their head around sneaker collecting? What’s so odd about a passion for something you wear on your feet every single day? There are so many facets to enjoy; comfort, style, history, colourways, collaborations, sentimentality, nostalgia… the list goes on. Ok, maybe the odd bit is the fact we own ones that sit on top of the wardrobe at home, collecting dust for years on end before we finally pluck up the courage to put them on feet, that is, if we end up wearing them overhovedet.

When it comes to collectors, there are two ends of the spectrum; some collectors have just 5 to 10 pairs, and carefully curate their sneaker rotation, but there are also collectors who just have to have everything. Miami Heat’s P. J. Tucker, generally accepted as the NBA’s biggest sneakerhead, has accumulated over 5,000 pairs of sneakers. Bear in mind, he is now in his 15th NBA season, so he can afford it.

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The love of Sneakers

We recently took to Twitter to ask our followers “Why do you collect sneakers?”, and the answer was clear with almost 80% responding with “I just love sneakers”. we all have our reasons for loving sneakers, but collecting them is a different kettle of fish.

I’ve been into sneakers since a very young age, and being the youngest in a family of nine (all of whom played basketball) there were plenty of hand-me-downs. I grew up seeing my sisters play in LA Gear, Cons Aero Jets, and the Air Jordan 7 “Olympics” in the ’80s and ’90s, and then my brothers in their Reebok Pump Omni 2’s and Air Jordan 5 in the early ’90s. Needless to say I was surrounded by pals and teammates showing off their latest pick-ups on court too. To show how deep the passion runs, I can still vividly see the kid at high school who had the Air Jordan 12 “Taxis”. I remember exactly where we were in school, and that I stared straight at his feet from the end of one period, until he walked off to his next class. I thought they were incredible. I still remember that, and that was 1996.

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Nostalgia

So, although I’ve always had a love for sneakers, I feel it has gotten stronger over the years as retro models are released and they bring with them fond memories and flashbacks to the glory days. These glory days for me aren’t just feelings of sentimentality, seeing sneakers released year after year that my older siblings rocked decades ago; for me it also goes back to ’90s NBA, heralded as one of the best eras in basketball – not just the game itself, but the sneakers worn on-court.

From the Shaqnosis to the Air Uptempos, there was serious heat in every game. And, seeing new releases of pairs like the Reebok Pump Omni Lite 2 takes me right back to 1991, Dee brown pausing to pump his tongues just before his alley-oop double-pump reverse in the dunk Contest. and the re-release of the Kamikazes; I can close my eyes and see Shawn Kemp flying high in the 1996 NBA All-Star Game. and of course, any Air Jordan from 1 to 14, I can picture countless games with MJ reaching new heights, breaking records, and taking apart opponents in whichever incredible model was released that year.

For some of us, we like to be able to own what we couldn’t when we were younger, whether that be financial reasons, or in the case of my 2018 Air Jordan 3 “Black Cement” purchase, pairs that were released when we were too young to buy them at the time (original release was 1988… when I was seven years old).

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Flex Appeal

Some collect simply for the street cred, or to flex with the ultimate fit on Instagram. and that means having the latest and greatest, most hyped, most elusive pairs of Jordans or Yeezys. Although you can be in to Jordans and Yeezys without doing it because they’re hyped, there are also a lot of sneakerheads who simply want the most expensive, most limited pairs to simply to show them off. and some just like the feeling they get lacing rare sneakers up, knowing there’s something extra special about their pair.

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One to Rock, One to Stock

This then brings us to the “One to rock, one to stock” dynamic of the sneaker game. When a sneaker is released, some sneakerheads try to pick up multiple pairs, so they have one to wear, and one to keep “on ice” or “DS” (deadstock). There can be many reasons for this too; some plan to wear the second pair once the first are worn out, but for some, the second pair may genuinely never leave the box – usually for sentimental reasons. Others plan on reselling the second pair to make up for, if not completely cover, the cost of the first pair. With the price of sneakers ever on the rise, it’s hard to blame them.

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The full Set

Another reason for collecting is the satisfactionaf at indsamle et komplet sæt. Der skal selvfølgelig være den oprindelige kærlighed til sneakers til at begynde med, men for nogle sneakerheads kan det begynde med et par og derefter snebold i en søgning efter hver farve eller model af en bestemt sneakerlinie.

En australsk samler gjorde netop det, da han begyndte sin Jordan -kollektion med 1 og 2, kun for at vokse til en samling på 27 par. Han har nu 1 til 23 (med nogle dobbeltpakker). Han sagde, at så snart han havde 1 og 2, kiggede han bare ned på en lang vej med at søge, undersøge og indsamle og kunne lide det, han så. Han har holdt et omhyggeligt regneark med sin samling sammen med fotos til hvert par og med alle par, der er uudnyttet i deres originale kasser. Han sagde også, at den eneste gang, han tænkte på at videresælge et komplet sæt.

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Videresalg

Nogle samler sig simpelthen for at videresælge og videresælge er en vigtig driver til sneaker, der indsamler i disse dage, uanset om vi kan lide det eller ej, endda kommer ind som den næsthøjeste respons i vores sneaker -afstemning. Sneaker -videresalgsmarkedet var værd at være utrolige 4,2 milliarder pund fra 2019, og det vokser. Det er et lukrativt marked, som mange mennesker lever mere end anstændigt fra. Selv nogle sneakerheads, der køber med den bedste intention, beslutter undertiden, at de har ændret mening, og har brug for at slå flere par af deres samling, og videresalg er vejen ud.

Selv Jordan Geller, en amerikansk sneaker -samler, der skabte sit skozeum for at vise sin utrolige samling, hvor han havde samlet over 2.500 par Nikes og Jordans, begyndte til sidst at sælge dem. Han sagde, at det blev en usund besættelse, og han besluttede at dele måder med nogle af sine mest elskede genstande; Mest berømt med et par underskrevne, spil-slidte Jordan 1s, som blev estimeret af Sotheby’s til at sælge for $ 150.000, men til sidst solgt for $ 560.000 gennem det verdensberømte auktionshus.

Uanset årsagen til at indsamle, starter det altid med en lidenskab for sneakers. Hvilken indledende form, der tager, og hvordan det udvikler sig gennem årene, er ned til den enkelte. Den fantastiske ting er, at det holder sneakers rundt. Selvom mange mennesker ser ned på videresalgsmarkedet, betyder det, at du pludselig kan være i stand til at klare det par, du gik glip af for mange år siden. Og hvad det bestemt gør er at holde dig på jagt, nogle gange for en bestemt sneaker, nogle gange for noget, du aldrig vidste, at du havde brug for, men vær sikker på, at der altid vil være et næste par.

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