How tennis collecting became a multi-billion dollar industry

(CNN) – In 2009, Derek Morrison stopped by an airport boutique and considered spending $ 960 on a pair of Louis Vuitton x Kanye West sneakers made from pink suede and caramel leather. In the end, he decided not to: he couldn’t justify the price and he had too many bags.

A little over a decade later, those sneakers are advertised on the US $ 10,000 the pair.

“I’ve regretted it ever since,” says Morrison, who now works as the senior European director of the athletic shoe resale platform. StockX.

Sneakers released just months before West debuted his Nike x Yeezy line have become a part of fashion history. “They represented a convergence of athletic footwear, Kanye and high fashion that was controversial at the time, but such a pivotal moment in the industry,” Morrison said, describing it as “a breakthrough that paved the way for the modern era we see today.” .

But the price is still relatively insignificant compared to some of the more valuable shoes on the collector’s market.

The sports shoe auction record has been broken multiple times since 2017, jumping from just over US $ 190,000 by a pair of Converse signed by Michael Jordan, which he wore at the 1984 Olympics, until the US $ 615,000 paid for a pair of the basketball star’s Nike Air Jordan 1s in 2020. Then earlier this year, another of Kanye West’s creations, the Nike x Yeezys prototype he wore to the 2008 Grammys, became the most expensive tennis shoes in history after being sold through a private sale for $ 1.8 million.

The past five years have seen an “explosion” of collectors spending a lot of money on unusual footwear, according to Caitlin Donovan, head of handbags, streetwear and tennis at Christie’s auction house. Along with athletic shoe resale platform Stadium Goods, Donovan recently hosted a sale focused on Nike’s Jordan line. The online auction, which concluded this week, featured nearly 30 rare pairs, from Jordan prototypes and game-worn sneakers to copies of the first limited editions. A pair of red and black Air Jordan High 1 vendors display was the most expensive item at the auction, selling for $ 27,500.

“From functionality to fashion, this auction has highlighted some of the most iconic sneakers that started on the runway and have become a part of pop culture and fashion history, both on the feet of the Grammy winners as well as fashion icons and famous athletes from all sports genres, “explained Donovan.

A luxury collectible

The increase in auction prices reflects strong growth in the secondary athletic shoe resale market, which StockX says is worth $ 10 billion. This figure is projected to rise to nearly $ 30 billion by 2030, as a growing number of collectors invest in limited-edition “deadstock” items (footwear that must be new and unworn), according to Morrison, with the goal of to resell them or display them as prized possessions.

Ligaya Salazar, curator of the new exhibition “Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street”, at the London Design Museum and sponsored by StockX, said that it is “young people, mostly from various neighborhoods in the center of the city” who have “made tennis what it is today.” These original tennis fans continue to make a big impact in the industry today, he added.

Tennis culture is also deeply intertwined with sports culture, especially after the launch of the 1985 Air Jordan shoes, which Donovan called “the first and most collectible tennis shoes.”

“It was the iconic sneakers from Jordan’s early days that gradually infiltrated mainstream and pop culture, creating a breed of new collectors: the ‘sneakerheads,'” he said.

Collectors have diversified in the years since, and Donovan has seen a growing number of millennials, who are “just beginning their collecting journey,” join the “most serious and established collectors in sports and fashion history. “.

The tennis collector Ann jacobe, who owns around 500 pairs (and insists he uses even the most valuable ones), said he welcomes the new interest from luxury investors and auction houses. The Filipino collector, who has “lost count” of how much money she has spent on sneakers, said it “raises awareness that they can be treated as art.”

“It’s a great thing, because I have high esteem for athletic shoes, as if they were a sculpture or a painting. And judging by the prices of some pairs (at auction), it definitely goes that way,” he said, adding that he would consider bidding. for some tennis at auction if “they resonate with me and give me joy.”

While some collectors treat sneakers purely as an investment, others like Jacobe don’t just want to own coveted pairs – they want to own the stories and lifestyles behind them, Morrison said. “People tend to engage in values, or narratives, or themes that transcend individual brands,” he said, adding that tennis can “make us feel connected to brands, people and cultural moments.”

Speaking of his shopping habits, Jacobe said: “Sometimes it’s how (a pair) makes me swoon the first time I see it; sometimes it’s the story behind the shoes and how it resonates with my values.”

If the Air Jordans are among the most popular sneakers on the market, they also have one of the best known stories. The result of a collaboration between Michael Jordan and Nike, the design is famous for mocking the NBA’s “51% rule”, which stated that footwear should be predominantly white. Nonetheless, Jordan wore a red and black pair during a preseason game, helping them transcend fashion to represent a cultural moment. Later, Nike took advantage of the controversy to reissue the original Air Jordan 1 as a “banned” edition.

Aware of the cultural power of tennis, Nike has since collaborated with luxury fashion brands such as Dior and Sacai, as well as non-athlete celebrities such as Travis Scott, and somewhat unlikely brands such as Ben & Jerry’s. Others have followed suit, from Adidas’ Avengers-themed sneakers to Balenciaga’s appeal to gamers through a partnership with PlayStation.

Milestones of sneaker culture can be found in Jacobe’s 500-pair collection, such as the Yeezy Boost 350 Turtle Doves (“a classic from Kanye West’s rich sneaker history,” he said) and the Nike Dunk SB Reese. Forbes (from what she called the early 2000s “craze” for Nike SB skate shoes). He spent nearly a year searching for a rare pair of Nike x Off-White sneakers from 2017, saying it was “like a vacation when I unpacked them.”

The collector is also looking for sneakers that pay tribute to her native country. Among his favorites are the Nike AF-1 Philippines, which carry the colors of the national flag, as well as a pair of Asics designed with Whang Od, the last traditional Filipino tattoo artist from the Kalinga tribe.

“It’s so surreal to find and own a pair that represents us and the community so well,” he says.

Change of actitud

However, not all collectors are motivated by their love of tennis. Like art and real estate, footwear can represent both an investment and a way to “diversify your assets,” says Donovan of Christie’s auction house.

“Limited edition versions of classic styles … have always been the pinnacle of the luxury secondary collectibles market,” he said, adding: “Collectors are looking for these collaborative works, often released in limited quantities in the primary market. , in the secondary market at higher prices “.

Reselling sites like StockX, which tracks the value of sneakers in real time and the latest sales as if they were Wall Street stocks, have made it easy for collectors to treat rare and expensive sneakers like merchandise. (The platform even checks for counterfeits at specific authentication centers.)

And getting new limited-edition designs is increasingly big business. Collectors could line up outside stores to see the latest “drop,” but many of today’s resellers resort to online “botting,” that is, using programs that automatically buy stock the moment they are sold. a new collection goes online. For brands that prefer to sell their products to hobbyists rather than bots, this is an “eternal arms race,” says Morrison.

If the smartest resellers play their cards right, they can earn tens of thousands of dollars selling out of stock products. StockX said the Jordan 1 Retro High Dior collaboration was the most expensive tennis release of 2020, selling for $ 2,000 but fetching $ 11,000 online through a Sotheby’s auction. Only 8,500 pairs of these sneakers were made, and they were released on Air Jordan’s 35th anniversary, a perfect trifecta of rarity, luxury collaboration and historic moment. Today, the highest bid for a pair on StockX exceeds US $ 12,600.

“There are many factors why some may be more expensive than others, such as their rarity, whether it was worn by a celebrity, or whether it is a publicized collaboration,” Morrison explains. “But in general, it comes down to supply and demand: the less there is, the more attractive or resonant the product is and the more it will cost to obtain.”

But regardless of whether collectors buy for pleasure or profit, everyone is looking for athletic shoes that speak to the culture of their time, Morrison said. “They are more than something that goes on the feet: they are a canvas that serves as a means of self-expression, whether you are a collector or if you use them right out of the box.”