The Kicks You Wear, Vol. 362 — We're halfway there!
2024 is halfway through! Can you believe it? Let's do a quick temperature check
Goooood morning, family! Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thanks so much for reading today. Appreciate y’all!
Before we get started, I wanted to say rest in peace to Upsale Cracc, who was killed earlier this week in a robbery in New York. I don’t have much to say about this. What else is there to say besides this is just senseless and tragic? None of this stuff is ever that serious, man. RIP.
Today is the final Friday in June. I know we usually do a mailbag here, but I wanted to take some time to review 2024 so far and assess what’s to come in these later months. Figured now would be as good a time as ever! So here we go.
Let’s jump in.
My sneaker of the year (SO FAR)
This is the section you’ve been waiting for, right? Everyone wants to know what everyone else’s Sneaker of the Year pick is. I think it’s pretty obvious to me.
My SOTY: It’s the AE 1. That’s a pretty easy pick for me. Honestly, it doesn’t feel like anything else is close.
If you’d told me I’d type that sentence three years ago, I’d call you crazy. Alas, here we are. In a world full of collaborations, the AE 1 has been the only thing that’s felt truly special to me in 2024.
How many pairs of Jordan 1s, Jordan 3s, Nike Dunks and New Balance 990s have we seen over the last few years? The more I see of a silhouette, the less special it feels whether it’s a collaboration or not. That’s usually where I’m at with those models now.
There’s nothing like the AE 1 both on and off the basketball court. It’s got a unique look to it that nothing else on the market has. It doesn’t matter what colorway you pick, you won’t find anything like it.
On top of that, the marketing campaign behind it is better than any collaboration I’ve seen so far this year.
Another plus is the accessibility. That’s one of my key tenets for SOTY — accessibility, aesthetics and hype.
This shoe wasn’t made to be limited. It keeps selling out, sure, but that’s because Adidas didn’t anticipate this big of a reception for it. While it’s selling out, it’s also restocked more consistently than other models have. And it only costs $120, which is far less of a barrier to entry than, say, a $225 Jordan sneaker.
I know, I know. This is probably a controversial pick for some of you — especially considering what’s out there. I’ll admit there are valid arguments against it.
I get the pushback on picking an overall sneaker model rather than a specific shoe here. That’s a legitimate gripe. Better-looking shoes have been released this year, including the Nina Chanel 3s, Futura Dunks and more. Some awesome shoes have been released in 2024.
But have any of them been as impactful as the AE 1? It sure doesn’t feel like it. We talk about the collaborations as they come. But as soon as they come, they’re gone. They’re flashes in the pan now because collaborations come a dime a dozen. They just feel…less special these days.
That’s not the AE 1. Every week it feels new. It’s fresh. It’s accessible. It doesn’t need to come with a story because it’s building one of its own in real-time. That’s SOTY material for me.
It’s still only June. There’s plenty of time left on the clock here. But for me? Right now? This is it.
Three big things: The biggest stories of 2024 so far
Now that SOTY is out of the way, let’s talk about the industry at large. It feels like a kaleidoscope to me. One person looks into it and sees the beauty in all the patterns it presents, seemingly randomly. The next person looks into it and only sees chaos.
The top companies (Nike and Adidas) have seemingly run out of exciting ideas. These days, they mostly play the hits while trying to find ways to stay interesting.
Meanwhile, their competitors (everybody else) are picking up the slack and dropping pieces consumers gravitate toward.
Here are the three biggest stories and trends in the industry so far.
Number One: Nike’s downfall feels like it’s somehow being understated. The brand projected its sales to dip by 10 percent next quarter during a Thursday Q4 earnings call. Demand is falling, and shareholders are selling. The brand’s stock plunged by 12 percent during after-hours trading.
Nike finally admitted what we’ve all been seeing for the last couple of years — it’s having a problem being interesting these days.
It’s why everyone keeps talking about “innovation.” In the meantime, while Nike tries to figure that out, it’s leaned too heavily on retro and everything feels stale.
Its direct-to-consumer strategy has also backfired. According to the brand, DTC revenue dipped by eight percent, and overall revenue dipped by two percent.
This is all happening after John Donahoe and company announced a $2 billion savings plan that involved laying off scores of people.
Nike needs a hit but can’t seem to find one. I doubt there’s one waiting in the back half of 2024.
Number two: On the other hand, Adidas’ bounceback has been impressive. The company was in dire straits after the Yeezy breakup. Now everything seems…fine.
The company has leaned on some of its classic euro styles to hold it up — particularly the Samba.
This is retro in a way, yes. But this works for Adidas because—let’s be honest—these were cult pieces before. Nobody was wearing them. Running it back might as well be running it a first time.
Plus, Adidas Basketball is cooking. The AE 1 is an hit. The Harden Vol. 8, the Dame 9 and the D.O.N 6 are good. Even its non-signature models are unique. Adidas Basketball has found an aesthetic. Few of its competitors can say that.
Everything isn’t perfect at the three stripes. The numbers still aren’t great, but they’re better than expected. Especially considering the Yeezy absence. But the uphill climb has commenced.
Number three: So. Many. Lawsuits. The legal side of the footwear and fashion industry has made headlines this year.
Nike closed its cases against BAPE and Kool Kiy this year to strengthen trademark protections. It also opened a massive case on hundreds of counterfeiters, which will be huge.
You’ve also got Goyard suing the Shoe Surgeon, which is a bigger case than many folks out there are thinking. The entire customization game might change in the blink of an eye.
Though these storylines dominated the first half of 2024, we should still keep our eyes on some of the particulars with them heading into
The five things to watch for the rest of the year
Speaking of the particulars, let’s talk about a few of them. Here are a few key moments and situations I’ll have my eyes on as we move into the second half of the year:
The Olympics: The Olympics are going to be a testing ground and a stage for a lot of athletic gear for every brand at the games. It’ll be interesting to see what sticks — especially on Nike’s part with how hard it’s pushing Air these days.
John Donahoe watch: Considering how bad things looks at Nike right now, I’m convinced John Donahoe’s days as CEO are numbered. I said it at the beginning of the year and I’ll reiterate it — Phil Knight support or not.
Adidas and Yeezy: What’s up with Adidas and Yeezy, man? Bjorn Gulden said in February that the brand was hoping to have sold through the remaining inventory in 2024, so I guess that means it’s done by the top of 2025. I wish they’d hurry up. Yeezy has only been a distraction away from things that have done so well for Adi.
Wholesale returns?: The downfall of direct-to-consumer has been harrowing. The DTC arms brands that went out of their way to create are now why they’re falling apart. Everyone is reverting to wholesale. It’s not just Nike — it’s an industry-wide thing. It’s been fascinating to watch.
Are collaborations flaming out? I touched on it with the AE 1, but can we make collaborations feel special again? There are very few creatives I look forward to seeing do work these days. It’s a shame. Please make good GRs again so collaborations can feel special again.
Y’all remember this?!?
Don’t let the AE 1 being sneaker of the year distract you from the fact that Donald Trump actually sold pairs of uh, signature (????) sneakers at SneakerCon this year.
Wild times, right? I was going to include this above section, but it was so ridiculous that it felt like it deserved its own moment.
The details: The simulation simulated hard with this one. I did some digging and found out one of SneakerCon’s founders is a Trump donor. Then, everything started to make a bit more sense.
Trump sold three pairs of sneakers at the convention — one pair sold for $399 and the other two were $199 individually.
A few days later, we figured out you could buy these sneakers without Trump’s T logo on them for $99 from a Chinese website. That boy is a scammer.
What a time, man. Those legal fees had to get paid one way or another, I guess.
#TheKicksWeWear
LET’S GET IT!!!!
First, my guy Mucci got us popping with these Ice Whites. MAN. I wish I didn’t look stupid in these. I love them so much.
The homie Alex flexed on us a lil bit with the Skeletor and Vietnam Dunks. He also threw a lil Gucci in there, too, for good measure.
The homie Jake popped out in the Mariner KD 15s. Underrated hoop sneaker. Very, very comfy.
My guy Matt found the cure for ankle sprains. It’s just Jordan 1s.
The home Cardea popped out with the Paisley Dunks with a PHENOMENAL lace swap. I love this look so much.
Then my AMAZING niece sent us home with the Olive AJ5s and I swear this is just the CUTEST THING EVER OMFGGGG
UGH SO CUTE. Y’all smoked that, man. WHEW.
That’s a wrap, folks! Thanks so much for reading today. I appreciate you giving me a bit of your time.
Have a fantastic weekend. Until next time. Peace and love. Be safe, be easy, be kind. We out.
-Sykes 💯