Brand of sneakers sold
Resale is basically Nike and a few pair here and there. In this region, Yeezy isn’t available at all, so if I don’t visit any retail outlets and find deals, selling another brand in resale is near impossible. This speaks to the health of the sneaker industry, but it also speaks to the importance of direct to consumer. As brands become more familiar with the buying habits of their fans, resale will diminish. While there are constant articles establishing that resale will continue to expand, I see the exact opposite taking place with how the market is right now.
My discussion of resale doesn’t cover the circular economy or thrifting. When I discuss resale, I’m looking specifically at sneaker resale and the buying of shoes from a retail outlet to flip on the many third party platforms. Resale is not thriving. The Dunk and Air Jordan 1 dominate the landscape, but not even I can get the hottest shoes out there because I refuse to trick the system with bots, or pay backdoor fees. My Jordan numbers continue to underwhelm, while my Nike numbers tend to reflect the larger marketplace. (above chart) Jordan is at 44 pair, Nike is at 244 and Reebok is the lone “other” brand with 2 pair. Reebok could have been much more, but FootLocker limits the number of the same type of shoes sold to one person. There are still a number of the Kamikaze in inventory and it really bothers me that a retailer would rather sit on a model that’s unpopular in the region than to clear it out. I understand the policies. New resellers don’t look to help a store. As a matter of fact, most resellers aren’t interested in helping the retail outlet. I operate in a manner where I’m attempting to see if other brands are picking up steam, so I look through the entire inventory of a shop. The average reseller only looks at the hottest shoes. They can’t forecast or predict trends, but neither can I as the restrictions have created a situation where I can’t risk trying to list and sell more products because I won’t be able to purchase those products.
How does resale continue to thrive if other brands aren’t healthy enough to drive interest? When one brand is the only brand capable of driving enough interest to fetch resale on general release sneakers, the market isn’t trending up. Or am I approaching this wrong? I’ve always written that resale shouldn’t exist if brands are marketing and utilizing data correctly. Wholesale should fulfill the needs of the market, except in instances where the shoe is too old, a release is regional, or the demand is too great. When these situations are in play, resale becomes a healthy reflection of the market and resale isn’t demonized, it’s appreciated.
What Do the Top 10 Sneakers Tell Us?
The Nike Dunk takes the #1 spot. The Air Force 1 is #2. The Nike Blazer is #3. During June an abundance of the Nike Dunk sneakers showed up at retail after not arriving at stores due to supply chain issues. The shoe shows Nike’s ability to introduce an under 100 shoe into the market. Inexpensive is no longer a strategy when competing with the Swoosh. In the list above, as limited as the data is,
- Nike Dunk
- Air Force 1
- Cortez
- Blazer
4 of the top ten are 100 dollars or less at retail. The Dunk Mid and Huarache are 110 dollars respectively and the Air Jordan 1 Mid is 115. Brands who utilize price as a strategy are looking at the market in the wrong manner. Price is a part of the equation; Promotion and Presentation matter in sneakers, just as they do in every aspect of sales. Nike’s attack of the market with AIR is unlike any other brand. VaporMax and Air Max are immediately recognizable as popular cushioning systems which hint at comfort. No other brand has made the concentrated effort to familiarize their fans with their cushioning system. BOOST was previously this for adidas when they usurped Nike as the best kicks in resale, but BOOST no longer resonates enough to drive fans to buy at SRP.
What can fix this and build a healthier marketplace? Time for predictions.
Visit a FootLocker right now and the UltraBoost is 79.99 in the Sydney, Montreal and Berlin colors. The Los Angeles NMD is 79.99. adidas has yet to really figure out a colorway in the Forum that pops in general release. adidas’ basketball retro is non-existent and really needs Jerry Lorenzo to begin creating. adidas Originals needs to launch the NMD S1. This could reignite the brand, because relying on limited Bad Bunny collabs is not going to carry over to other models. New Balance can’t really enter this party because if they overproduce 990s and move from collabs the brand will lose the heat they’ve built. If I’m honest, the only way the brands can gain momentum is if resale becomes more regulated. That’s a big ask.