Fashion. A popular trend, especially in styles of dress and ornament or manners of behavior. From as far back as history writes, fashion has always been a staple in society. If you did not dress and act in the standardized manner, you were looked at differently. But eventually, originality developed. People wanted to stand out, be unique, and make their own mark. Since the trend of originality developed, fashion has adapted with it. Different styles and unique designs took over the world, and creativity in fashion blew up. Designers around the world come up with their unique styles and created a worldwide culture. Today, fashion is a major part of our world, especially our economy. The 1.2 trillion-dollar worldwide market generates high-value jobs with high pay in some of the most influential cities in the world. Los Angeles, New York City, London, Paris, Milan – all fashion capitals of the world with individual markets that are of the most popular and expensive worldwide. Fashion trends throughout the years have come and gone. However, over the last 2-3 decades, one fashion trend has been on the rise and hasn’t stopped yet: sneakers. Sneakers offer people a very easy way to express their individuality and unique styles, and since shoes are a necessary item for every day, they have more and more chances to do so. Sneakers offer the ability to customize, design, and even create new and unique styles and designs. Because they are so versatile, shoes can complement many different looks with one style of sneaker. Since their popularity and influence continues to grow, sneakers have developed into a multi-billion dollar industry that has attracted people of all ages from around the world. This attraction has created a subculture of collectors, salesmen, artists, and others that is worth millions by itself. With such a large following, and such an influential economy, sneakers are very much the most influential piece of fashion culture in the last 3 decades.

Like every and any other trend, it all started with an origin. The sneaker culture, while having numerous influential locations around the world, truly started in New York City. It was the spawn of the social and economic changes going on in NYC during the late 20th century. Hip-hop was very a prevalent movement during that time, and many up and coming artists were sponsored by clothing brands. During that period of time, fashion and style was all about “looking fly.” Since sneakers were easily customized, either by coordinating laces to match an outfit, or by using markers and paints to make your own colorway, they were very popular, one could even say essential, to having a fly outfit. But it wasn’t only the practicality that made shoes popular, it was people’s desire to dress like their idols as well. In Robert Garcia’s book “Where'd You Get those? : New York City's Sneaker Culture, 1960-1987”, he writes:

There was a worldwide mass culture of sneaker consumption, but only in New York, the global Mecca of playground basketball and hip hop, was there the subculture of sneaker fiends and connoisseurs. This group would wind up influencing the sneaker industry, the music industry, the fashion world, the vintage market, and the global consumer market for years after right through to the present day. (14)

During this time of fashion revolution, unique clothes were a major part of hip-hop during its development. Hip-hop was all the buzz back in the day, so naturally the followers of the music found idols that they looked up to. When they saw things that their idols were wearing, they obviously wanted to have them. Fresh kicks were a very important part of a musicians look and style, and the flashy shoes always stood out. Famous rap group Run-D.M.C. even wrote a song titled “My Adidas” which was obviously about how much they loved their sneakers. Back when the song was released, Adidas was not a very popular brand, however. But, that song made Adidas the brand of choice. The group’s influence on their followers’ fashion choice was remarkable. In one instance, before one performance of the song, they asked the crowd to “show us your Adidas.” About 3,000 fans immediately lifted their sneakers for display. Undoubtedly impressed, Adidas signed a $1.6 million contract with Run-D.M.C. and created their own shoe line. This song proved that rap was not just a form of music, but a lifestyle. Thus, hip-hop fashion spread, especially the sneakers, and clothing companies started designing more hip-hop  oriented styles. That has continued throughout the present day. Now-a-days, music icons like Kanye West, Eminem, and others have their own line of footwear with brands like Nike. Their sneaker lines, which Nike knows are highly sought after, are released in limited numbers, creating a level of demand that is hard to comprehend for an item like a shoe. 

Although music culture was a major influence for the start of the sneaker culture, the sports world also holds major influence. In terms of streetwear, the music world still has reigns on that form of shoe style and design, but for athletics, the basketball shoe changed everything. 

The 1984 NBA Draft. 1st Round/3rd pick for the Chicago Bulls: Michael Jordan. Perhaps the greatest basketball player in the history of the game, Michael Jordan is the prime figurehead in the world of sneakers. His first pair from Nike was released in 1984. Nike’s Head Designer, Peter Moore presented sketches of the Air Jordan sneakers, jumpsuits, and other sports apparel, all in black and red. Nike signed Jordan to a 5-year deal worth $2.5 million, plus royalties and other benefits, and the rest is history. The release of the 1 changed the athletic shoe industry forever. The first shoe was a controversy to say the least. The colors of black and red were totally out of compliance with the NBA’s rules, so they banned the shoe. Jordan, however, wore them anyway, compiling fines of up to $5k per game. Nike payed the fines with no problem just to keep the shoes on Jordan’s feet and in the public eye. The controversy and Jordan’s ridiculous numbers that year really implanted the name brand in everyone’s mind. Again, children that idolized MJ as a player and role model wanted to have his shoes. Demand for his shoes prompted Nike to continue his shoe line. Soon after his first shoe cam the Air Jordan 2, then the Air Jordan 3, then 4, and 5, all the way up to 30. THIRTY different shoe styles, and counting, produced by Nike with Jordan’s name attached to it. While Jordan’s career continued to develop, more and more people had to have the shoes. Eventually, popular ads came out promoting the footwear. “It’s Gotta Be the Shoes!” was Nike’s famous ad during ’89 while they were selling the “Air Jordan V”. In Scoop Jackson’s (ESPN) article, he discusses the shoe’s influence around the world. When he spoke to Tinker Hatfield, the man responsible for a majority of the Jordan designs and colorways, he said he has “never went one place and didn't see something I designed.” That kind of worldwide influence is almost unheard of unless you’re talking about items as significant as cars, yet here we are talking about a sneaker. Today, NBA stars like LeBron James, Steph Curry, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, and others have similar contracts. Their lines of footwear, while not as profitable or popular as MJ’s, still account for a large amount of Nike’s sneaker profits. As said before about Run DMC and MJ, sneakerheads around the world are paying top dollar for these shoes when they are released by Nike, because they idolize those who wear them. The key part of that sentence was “released by Nike.” Why? Well, what if they sell out on Nike.com and in Nike stores before you can get a pair? Do you just give up? Or do you hunt down that shoe because you want it so badly? Welcome to the sub culture of the sneaker world.

In Tommie Battle’s article from www.complex.com, he talks about his experience, as a consumer, in the world of sneakers. He began collecting in college, and he was immediately hooked. However, when he started, there weren’t many outlets for the sneaker craze. That was until Tommie, and millions of others with his same obsession, stumbled upon Niketalk. The online forum that was literally created to strictly talk about, share pictures of, and sell sneakers on the aftermarket. Back in his day, social media was in its infancy. Now, social media is the main hub of sneakers. In fact, when Nike releases a new shoe, they tweet the link to buy them online. But with technology, comes hacks. Programmers have developed bots that will automatically scan twitter for the links, click them as soon as they are released, and will select your shoe size and auto-add them to your cart. While this is an efficient way to buy sneakers, it comes at a cost. Also, if you don’t buy a bot, your chances of getting the shoes drop by around 90%. On average, the new releases are sold out on Nike’s website within the first 2 minutes of the link being released. This wasn’t always the case, however. Back in Tommie’s day, shoe retailers had in store releases. For shoes that were highly anticipated items, people would line up outside of the store, days in advance, to make sure they could snag a pair. With that came riots, crowds, theft, and more. There have been several instances of riots erupting in malls and outside of stores because people would cut a line or try to rush the store. All this craze created a dark side of the sneaker market. People have been robbed at gunpoint, and even killed over their shoes. Sports Illustrated even released an issue of their magazine “Your Sneakers or Your Life?” that commented on the violence and crime that follows the sneaker culture. However, being jumped for your kicks isn’t all you had to worry about if you possess a high-valued pair. Fake currency, for starters is a huge risk in the world of shoes. If you sold a NORMAL pair of shoes for upwards of $250, it would suck to find out that you were given fake bills. Now, imagine getting fake bills for a shoe that you sold for nearly $3k…yes some shoes are selling at that price and even higher. Then, you have the opposite side of the spectrum. If you dish out large amounts of money for a pair of shoes, only to find out the shoes are knock-offs, then you are at just of heavy of a loss. This culture developed into business opportunities for people, but also created those risks associated with the cash business of the aftermarket sneaker world. 

The fact that retailers sell out as fast as they do, obviously creates the aftermarket. But the demand is so high, the price of any shoe can literally skyrocket. This idea of making a profit on the shoe, if you’re lucky enough to get a pair for retail price, created the art of reselling. It is as simple as it sounds – buying a shoe for the retail price, and immediately flipping it for profits as much as $3,500. When Kanye West’s signature “Air Yeezy” dropped, they were retailed by Nike for $245. All but 3 minutes after they released, sellers hit eBay, Craigs List, Facebook, and other selling websites charging anywhere from $3-$5,000 for their pair. Forbes Magazine did an article about how Sneaker culture fuels a $1 billion dollar secondary market. The author of the article, Deborah Weinswig writes:

The market for sneakers is booming, driven by millennial demand and a strategic business approach by the major players. According to SportsOneSource, the international sneaker market has grown by more than 40% since 2004, to an estimated $55 billion. In 2015 alone, the athletic footwear industry in the US grew by 8%, generating $17.2 billion in sales, with unit sales growing by 3% and the average selling price growing by 5%, to $61.15, according to The NPD Group. Among just the three major players—Nike, Adidas and Under Armour—sales increased to more than $25 billion in 2013, which represented a 47% jump from 2009, The Washington Post reported. Millennials in particular are driving this dramatic growth, spending $21 billion on footwear in 2014, a 6% increase from the year prior, with the biggest category being footwear over $100. Nike’s line of Jordan sneakers alone, which retail for around $100 to $200, boasted $2.6 billion in US sales in 2014, according to SportScanInfo. Sports shoes are “expected to have the largest market in terms of volume globally from 2014 to 2020,” according to PR Newswire. Transparency Market Research said it expects the global footwear market to reach $220.2 billion in value and 10.974 million units by 2020.

With number projections like that, the sneaker world and its influence will continue to boom well into the future. Its influence, which stemmed from athletes like Michael Jordan and music artists like Run DMC, has expanded worldwide and created its own culture and economy that has impacted millions around the world. 

Sneakers. A basic staple in an everyday outfit. Sneakers. The center item of a multi-billion dollar industry, and an obsession-driven subculture worth almost as much. From its beginning, the world of sneakers has done nothing but grow. Starting with the hip-hop culture in NYC and the world of music’s influence on society, sneakers gained popularity. Then when the sports world got involved, and Michael Jordan started his career, that sneaker popularity took off, and it has not stopped soaring. 3+ decades later, the world of sneakers has grown and spread worldwide. Kids, adults, men, and women – completely obsessed with shoes. Personal collections grew, people opened small businesses, even kids like me cashed in on the opportunity to make some money, own some cool shoes, and even make some friends that shared the same interest. This culture is projected to continue to grow far into the future, further solidifying that sneakers are the most influential and popular fashion trend in the last 30 some-odd years. 
