The Kicks You Wear, Vol. 190 — No, people won't stop reselling Off-White kicks
It's a shame. But it's not happening.
What up, family! Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear! Thank you all so much for rocking with me this week. I appreciate you.
Today is my birthday, y’all! And on this day I’m seriously thankful for your presence in my life. Y’all have taught me so much that I’ll forever be grateful for. I’m looking forward to another year around the sun learning more from you.
With that, let’s get it popping.
Here we go again
People everywhere have rightfully taken the time to honor Virgil Abloh this week after his untimely passing. They’ve shared incredible stories, pieces of his work and many of them made appearances at Louis Vuitton’s “Virgil Was Here” show to see his final collection.
But now the conversation has shifted. People aren’t talking about those things as much as they’re talking about Off-White resale prices these days.
Which, by the way, are through the roof. Even for Off-White.
What’s happening:
Remember when the Off-White AJ2 price dropped to around $700 on StockX ahead of the release? That’s up to $1100 now.
Or how about the Off-White Zoom Fly’s? Lowest ask in a size 12 is about $2,000 now.
It’s not happening with every pair of Off-White sneakers, but many of them have seen resale prices skyrocket with Abloh’s passing. The same thing happened with Kobe Bryant’s sneakers after his tragic passing where pairs were sold for thousands of dollars that had only been in the low hundreds just days before.
Lots of folks have been out there on the internet asking StockX, GOAT and other resale platforms to pull down Off-White listings.
Let’s be real: That’s not happening.
Virgil’s work is a massive mover in this industry. Removing it from the platform means huge potential losses for these companies. And they're not in the business of that.
Even if they did pull it, many of these brands are only going to hold off on selling these shoes but for so long. Kobe prices still haven’t dwindled back to what they were. That’s because they never will.
The same thing applies here for Virgil’s stuff. It’ll never be what it once was. Death is permanent, unfortunately. And, because of that, the greed that follows it will be, too. This is just how capitalism works. It’s gross. Abhorrent. Ghoulish. There are so many ways to describe this behavior and none of them are nice.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter. Yes, it sucks that these sorts of financial barriers are in place blocking folks from honoring this legend they love and respect. I get it. Trust me. I wish it wasn’t this way.
But the thing is you don’t really need those Off-White kicks to do that. You know what he did. You know what his work meant. And in the end, that’s what really counts.
Instagram shock drops are a vibe
It was bad enough missing out on JoeFreshGoods’ “Outside Clothes” 990v3 drop twice already this year. But, ya know. Third time is is charm, right?
Wrong. I missed out again. That’s not the interesting thing here, though. The hook here is I actually had a chance had I moved quickly enough.
What happened: JFG shock dropped his 990v3 on Instagram earlier this week.
You’re probably saying, “wait, what? On Instagram?” Yes, on Instagram.
He made the shoes available via Instagram’s shop tool with pairs coming in multiple sizes.
No one knew he was doing this. It was a legit shock drop and didn’t show up on radars across the internet until a few minutes after the release at 3 p.m. Sizes were available for quite a bit.
There was no way for anyone to know this was coming, really. You’d have to have seen it on Instagram yourself. The homie B Mart (Shouts to SNKRHUD) actually hipped my group chat after seeing them on Dennis Todisco’s IG story. I just didn’t catch it in time.
Number one, let that be a lesson, folks. Keep up with the group chat! Don’t be like me.
But more importantly: This just showed us that Instagram’s shop tool might actually be a viable drop space — at least for now. JFG’s drop worked extremely well on it. Pleasures just dropped a Reebok Club C collab via IG as well.
Heading into 2021, it wouldn’t surprise me if we saw a lot more of these. And I think that would be a really good thing. Aside from giving Facebook pertinent information, of course. But that’s another convo for another day.
The biggest Yeezy month ever
It feels like every December, Yeezy comes through with big restocks that catch people’s eye. Last year, for example, it was the Bred 350 v2’s.
This year it’s everything. Yeezy is about to have a pretty massive December mixed with restocks and new drops. They’ll have 15 releases in total, per Sneaker News. One of which is the Berluga 350 v2.
Why this matters: It’s pretty big news, obviously, if you’re a Yeezy fan. But it also shows us where this brand has risen to in just the span of six years.
They’re now at a point where the selection is so massive that they can have a massive month with 15 releases and no one blinks an eye.
Just three or four years ago, this was unheard of. Yeezy was still a brand where, if you could catch one drop, it was a massive win. Now it’s common.
This sort of growth is good for the sneaker industry. A bigger Yeezy brand means more competition from everyone else.
Plus, you know, y’all get those Berlugas you’ve been looking for for a while now.
Not the tenders, man. Anything but the tenders
Man. Look. The supply chain can take my sneakers. It’s fine. I understand the business that comes with that. Does it hurt? Sure. But, again, it’s fine.
But the chicken tenders? THE CHICKEN TENDERS?!?!? Nah, dog. Don’t take the tenders from me. Please. Don’t take the tenders from me.
Somebody fix the damn supply chain. Right now. Enough is enough.
#TheKicksWeWear
YOU KNOW THE VIBES. Y’ALL CAME WITH IT FOR MY BIRTHDAY. THANK YOU!!!
First the homie Storm got us poppin with these Gold Toe 1’s perfectly coordinated with the Ja jersey. SHEEEEEEEEESH.
Then the homie Rhe popped out in the Shattered Backboard mids on some chill vibes. Yes, y’all. This the heat she just running errands in.
My guy Shawn P came through correct as always with these FANTASTIC AM90s. Good God.
My guy Andy popped out in the JFG 990v3 and, yes, you are absolutely correct, I’m jealous as hell.
Then the homie Chris came through with the Tie Dye 1’s looking wavy as hell. Whew.
My guy Geoff is really getting the little one started off early here. Man. Don’t ever let me become a parent. It’s over for my pockets.
Y’all know how my dog Adrian does it. The vibes are rich with the Varsity High 85’s. That’s a double entendre — don’t ask me how.
The homie Trey popped out in the Grateful Dead SB’s and I’M FINNA PULL UP ON THIS MAN IF HE KEEP STUNTING ON ME LIKE DIS.
The homie Brett popped out in the Pendleton Air Max 1 joints. BEAUTIFUL.
Then the homie JD sent us home with these Off-White J’s. Hell yeah. Long live Virgil.
SMOKED THAT. Y’all really did it up for me, man. I love you so much.
And with that, we are out. Thank you so much for rocking with me today, family. Appreciate y’all, once again.
Back on Monday with more sneaker news. Til then, fam, peace and love. Be easy, be safe and be kind. Holla.
-Sykes 💯
Of course Yeezys are easier to get now that I'm really not interested in them ....
BTW did you see the new 350 v2 "Blue Lives Matter" cw?