The Kicks You Wear, Vol. 390 — Getting out at the right time 👀
Smart move, Scott Cutler.
Goooood morning, folks! Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thanks so much for rocking with me today. Appreciate you.
HOUSEKEEPING: The newsletter will be out this Friday. Have some stuff to handle that’ll take up most of the end of the week. Apologies.
It’s also getting close to holiday time, so I’ll have my top sneakers of the year ready for you soon along with KYW’s takeaways on the industry in 2024. It’ll be a blast!
The Kobe Poll: I asked you all if you thought $200 was too much for Kobes in our last newsletter. 51 of you voted in the poll. Thanks for sharing your opinion.
Of the people who participated, a whopping 69 percent (nice) said the shoes were too expensive.
12 percent of you said they weren’t too expensive and you’ll still cop.
Another 20 percent of you said they were too expensive…but you’re buying anyway.
Let’s jump in.
There’s a new (old) boss at StockX
The aftermarket is shifting, folks. StockX CEO Scott Cutler is reportedly stepping down at the turn of the calendar, Business of Fashion’s Daniel-Yaw Miller reports.
The backdrop: Cutler has been the company’s CEO since 2019 when he took over. He’s being replaced by Greg Schwartz, who is one of the company’s co-founders and has served as its chief operating officer since its beginning.
Cutler saw plenty of ups and downs as the company’s CEO.
On the upside: Cutler had the company humming through the pandemic. StockX generated over $400 million in sales in 2021 with a $3.8 billion valuation.
He opened the platform up to a world beyond sneakers. Collectibles, electronics and more now have a home on StockX.
The Walmart deal could be a huge deal as the resale market continues to dip.
On the downside: The Nike lawsuit poses a huge issue for StockX. It has not been handled well.
Not only is the brand’s relationship with the leader in the footwear industry tainted but it’s also lost a ton of credibility with consumers because of it.
That’s especially true following stories about dozens of fake pairs filtering through the platform and the Zadeh Kicks scandal.
The timing: This is the most interesting part of this story. It’s less about what Cutler did in his time and more about what he’s walking away from and when he’s doing it.
Cutler was never going to be StockX’s CEO forever. But, man, this was the perfect time to get out of the game.
The state of play: The hyper-growth period of the secondary market is long over. Sneaker sales are only expected to grow year over year at an annual rate of 3.6 percent through 2027. Cash cows like the Jordan 1 aren’t working as well anymore. The Yeezy business has completely collapsed. Resale companies that were launched during the pandemic are folding. Consumers are showing more variance in what they’re willing to wear and consumer, which has sparked less of a reliance on the secondary market and more purchases at straight up retail.
Normal has returned. Or, well, what normal was before the pandemic. The consumer’s thirst for the most hyped silhouettes and the over-reliance on aftermarket online storefronts was never sustainable. It was a bubble waiting to burst.
The secondary market has always been a tool — sneakerheads have been using eBay for years. But it was never the tool. It never should’ve been. But that’s what it was for a while there, from 2020 to 2022.
The problem for Schwartz — and other leaders on resale platforms for that matter — is that they have to figure out now what navigating this space looks like.
Newer platforms like StockX and GOAT are at a disadvantage when it comes to this.
StockX has only been around since 2016. For most of its existence, it’s dealt in deadstock sneakers and limited apparel drops. That’s a hyper-specific ecosystem that is booming when it’s booming. When it’s not? You’ve got to pivot.
as a competitor, eBay has far more product variance, which builds a foundation that makes this reality a bit easier to navigate.
StockX has to get to that point. Schwartz has to get it there. It’s on the path thanks to some of the foundation Cutler laid down, but it’s always about scale with these companies. How do you grow it? How does it get bigger? What’s the next step?
That’s for Greg Schwartz to know and for us to find out.
Big moves for Fear of God
The battery in Jerry Lorenzo’s back is on overdrive. We’ve heard and seen a lot more from the Fear of God founder since his future with Adidas was questioned.
There were two big moves from Lorenzo in just the last week alone.
First, we got our best look yet at the upcoming Adidas Fear of God 2. And they were used on the court!
Lakers point guard Gabe Vincent debuted them on the court last week.
That’s a huge deal.
The obvious reason is that it gives us a quasi-official look at the FOG 2. Every picture taken on an NBA court is high quality, unlike the leaked imagery we’re used to. Every photo we’ve seen of them has been excellent.
On top of that, this brings credibility to the shoe and the Fear of God brand as one truly grounded in performance. It’s no longer a talking point — we can see it in action at the highest professional level.
Speaking of performance, new Fear of God Athletics also partnered with Adidas to launch an Overtime Elite team.
OTE is a semi-professional league for up-and-coming ball players coming straight out of high school. It’s an alternative to attending college and entering the NCAA system.
The team’s name is Team Athletics and Lorenzo designed the uniforms himself.
If nothing else, this is a very cool venture for the brand. It’s another place to show off Fear of God footwear and athletic wear. There’s also potential to get top prospects potentially heading to the NBA in Athletics gear, which could be huge.
It’s been a rough few years for FOG, but this is a solid spot to be in for the brand.
A Complex mistake
ComplexCon has the people upset. Again.
The official Sneaker of the Year panel was announced last week. It’ll include the brand’s Complex Sneaker Podcast crew with Brendan Dunne, Matt Welty and Joe La Puma. Along with them, they’ll have Lil Yachty and PJ Tucker.
The big problem: Not a single woman is included on this panel. This was first pointed out by Sneaker Phetish, who brought it up after details surfaced.
Women have had a pretty big year in sneakers, from Nina Chanel Abney’s Air Jordan 3 being one of the best sneakers this year to Yoon’s fantastic work with Naomi Osaka to the general incredible year we’ve had from women in sports. There’s a need for that perspective there if you’re going to have a serious discussion about the best sneakers of 2024.
Yachty and PJ Tucker are sneakerheads. They’re certainly qualified and have different tastes.
But representation does matter in these discussions. It’s a bit disappointing to see it overlooked here from Complex.
De’Aaron Fox having fun
I keep telling y’all, man. Having fun is the way to go with these signature shoes.
Remember when I said that De’Aaron Fox’s signature shoe probably wouldn’t be that interesting? Well, this great holiday commercial likely just sold a ton of people on them.
You’ve got Santa Claus coming through and dropping off De’Aaron Fox’s shoes under the Christmas trees of all of his rivals with signature shoes. The first was Steph Curry. He’s got everyone on his list, from Steph to Bron to Giannis and more.
The intrigue: This is fun and spicy from Under Armour and the Curry Brand. Not only that, but it also sets you up for a bit of mystery. You don’t see the sneaker at all in the commercial — it leaves a bit left to be desired for the viewer.
That’s a bit risky, considering you want people to see the product you’re pushing. But I think the storytelling we see in this commercial more than make up for that.
This is awesome, man. I’m glad we’re having fun in sneakers again.
What’s droppin’, bruh?
Air Jordan 11 “Bred Velvet” — Monday, November 11
Nike Air Max DN “Light Bone” — Tuesday, November 12
Travis Scott x Jordan “Jumpman Jack” — Wednesday, November 13
Hal Studios x Asics Gel Kayano 20 “Bone” — Thursday, November 14
Bape x Adidas Orketro — Friday, November 15
Thanks so much for reading, gang. Appreciate you. Have a fantastic week. Let’s chat again next Monday.
If you’ve got any questions or comments, feel free to reach out via email at mikedsykes@gmail.com or via Substack here:
Peace and love. Be safe, be easy, be kind. We out.
-Sykes 💯