For my first video I wanted to share with you my top four favorite sneakers that I own and also delve into their resales values along with the history of the shoes. For this rundown, I will primarily going over Air Jordan’s, with some new flavors mixed in a little bit. For me, the 90’s and the era around it were a special time, but I was not of age to appreciate the entire culture for what it was. That being said, there is a ton of nostalgia tied into these shoes along with some new feelings for the modern selections. You will probably recognize the selections in this video as they are some all-time classics. I also wanted to explore some of the retail values of these sneakers as well.
While I do love collecting shoes and the stories behind them, I also feel firmly that sneakers or a material possession are not the end-all, be-all, but rather how you feel in that moment in time and how it can have a bigger impact on your life. That has been my connection with shoes and I wanted to share it with you in this video. With collecting shoes, I also feel like it is a way to connect to a different moment in time along with being able to learn more about a hobby that can lead to some monetary gains. This was a fun list to put together and would love to hear your thoughts on some of your favorites as well!
As maybe the strangest month of my adult life has come to a close, I have had some time to reflect on the last couple months of this blog. It has been such a joy to write consistently again for a purpose and I look forward to continuing into the summer with more anecdotes for pop culture and business. However, for now I want to go over some of my main purchases this last month or so in quarantine and power rank them on the grand scale of other iconic quarantine pick-ups. In terms of sheer economics, there are definitely few more interesting case studies than what consumers spend on than during a national pandemic so I wanted to share some of my own.
The Fire Red Air Jordan 5’s re-release on May 2, 2020. Image via Nike SNKRS.
Air Jordans/Sneaker in general: Well, it definitely is important to have a solid “drip” even when it is just you and your pet chinchilla mostly hanging in the house. The moment this blog is posted will be the day before the Air Jordan “Fire Red” 5’s drop at most major sneaker outlets. So while shoes might not have as much utility as hand sanitizer right now, it is truly something I am thankful and can still afford to spend on my hobby. What’s more is I am able to wear more of my shoes consistently around the house which was been a blessing in disguise somedays. While no new Yeezys have sparked my attention, my fondness for the sneaker game has grown more over this time, in a responsible way that is!
Video game consoles: This was really a surprise entrant to the list, but with vacations and trips out of town being postponed, video games have stepped in to fill some of that break time void. While I have always enjoyed playing in the past, they are a truly large time commitment that can be spent elsewhere. However, between Call of Duty: Warzone and Madden 2020 being on Xbox One, this was as solid a time as any to pick up a new console, the first modern one I have purchased since 2012. Shout out to all my homies in the Gulag holding it down!
Toilet paper, I meanmore Digorno pizza: Frozen foods and I have a real love-hate relationship and the amount of time I have spent cooking at home has definitely gone up since mid-March. While my chef skills are hardly on the level of the Gordon Ramsay’s of the world, my appreciation for cooking and tasks around the home have definitely gone up. From cooking more to fixing things around the house to gardening, there have been a solid amount of projects done during my work breaks and down time at home. I definitely have taken to looking at each situation as glass half-full, so I am thankful to have knocked some things off my to-do list in this lovely weather.
So what have been your highlights during quarantine? Let me know in the comments below.
Among the top most desired items in a household in America circa April 2020, a new pair of tennis shoes is not even close to the top of the list. Toilet paper (!!), hand sanitizer and other discretionary cleaning supplies reign supreme as the world changes and shifts due to the demands of COVID-19. While oil prices have dropped drastically, the sneaker stock market has not seen much a shift in the way of Air Jordan’s reverting back to their 1980’s price point. Of course this hopefully means the sneaker economy will be able to rebound in 2020, but with changing release dates and times, should I really be prioritizing the latest sneaker release over the bare essentials? Well I guess it depends on who you ask.
With the upcoming release of the “Fire Red” Air Jordan 5‘s, my mind immediately gravitates toward the idea of owning this OG pair of shoes and adding it to my collection. However, with the economy changing almost every day and the future uncertain, is buying a new pair of sneakers the best move? Well, in my eyes yes because it is one of my favorite hobbies and the price is right. Indeed this is a time for anybody around the world to fulfill their hobby needs if it brings them joy and happiness. Also if it is within reason, of course.
A brand new pair of Jordan 5 Retro “Oregon Ducks” will cost you at least $7,000 on StockX brand new. This is almost six times as much as the base federal stimulus check ($1,200) sent out earlier this month. Image via StockX.com
While my wallet has certainly had its fair share of battles with sneakers, it seems only a global pandemic can slow down the likes of Jordan and Yeezy. Over the past couple of decades, tennis shoe prices have only gone up, with a new pair of Air Jordan or Yeezy V2 sneakers easily costing you over $220 retail for just one pair. This doesn’t even get into the fact that the values skyrocket up even more on the resale market (anybody looking to drop over a grand original 350 Turtle Doves?). Nonetheless, sneaker sales have been down this year and release dates have been pushed back as supply chains have shifted and companies batten down the hatches on their warehouses.
However, sneaker websites like StockX and GOAT have made it clear for their customers that they are there to support them during these restricted times due to COVID-19. Their brand is one of style and fashion so having to shelter in place is not ideal for their target market consumer showing off their latest kicks. Indeed though it does present an opportunity to make sure their customers are taken care of and know that they are still doing business during these uncertain times. Which somehow makes me want to buy shoes more. Maybe it is the cabin fever or that the timing is just right.
So let me know what you think on Twitter if you think buying shoes or spending on your hobby is a good idea right now.
In these uncertain times, I can take solace in the fact that retro Air Jordans will still be released and scooped up by the masses in hopefully the near future. Well, maybe not all the time (apologies to the Jordan 4 Retro ‘What The’), but Jordans are still a coveted item for sneaker enthusiasts, especially around the holiday season. With the dawn of a new decade upon us, and what a start to the decade it has been, I wanted to take a small tour down memory lane and go over my top three favorite OG Air Jordan releases of the 2010’s. A couple notes though before we get into it: a) the shoes must have been an original release colorway, (ex. the red/black 1’s from 1985), b) the shoe must have been released in the 2010’s and c) must not be a collaboration (Travis Scott, Virgil Abloh, etc.)
With those rules in mind let’s go over some honorable mention favorites of mine from the last 10 years.
Jordan 5 Retro Grape (2013): Made famous by Will Smith on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, the Grape 5’s have been a staple of most sneakerhead collections. With a colorway that invokes a very 90’s era feel (Larry Johnson and the Charlotte Hornets anyone?), the Grapes are an essential piece for most collections. Also special salute to Chris Rock for rocking a pair of these on the cover for his comedy album, “Born Suspect”. Jordan 3 Retro Black Cement (2018): Pencilled by many as the greatest Air Jordan of all time, the Black Cement 3 is an iconic colorway on an iconic silhouette. Made famous by Michael Jordan during the 1988 All-Star game and in a series of ads with Spike Lee, the Black Cement 3 is an excellent shoe and also one of the staple pieces of any collection. Now with those two out of the way, let’s roll onto the top three.
3. Jordan 11 Retro Space Jam (2016): The original pair of “Space Jams” were debuted back in the 1995 NBA playoffs by Michael Jordan against the Orlando Magic. Led by Penny Hardaway and Shaquille O’Neal, the upstart Magic were able to topple the mighty Chicago Bulls 4-2 in Jordan’s return from baseball. However, the legacy of the shoes only grew from there when they were later featured in the iconic “Space Jam” film alongside a slew of classic Looney Tunes characters. When this pair re-released back in 2016, it actually featured the number 45 on the back as opposed to MJ’s original 23 which was a feature that was present on the original model back in 1995. Additionally, back in 2016, the Space Jam re-launch was Nike’s “largest and most successful shoe launch in the history of the company” according to president Trevor Edwards.
2. Jordan 11 Retro Concord (2018): Man, in terms of sheer boldness, there might not be a better silhouette and color combination than the Air Jordan 11 “Concord”. Released around the same time as the “Space Jams”, the Concords (named after the purple-ish hits on the bottom of the sneaker), are an absolute masterpiece. The re-release in 2018 also featured the number 45 on the back of the sneaker and was an immediate sell-out upon release. While Jordan Brand has had to fend off the likes of Adidas’ Yeezy line the past couple of years, the holiday releases of Jordan 11’s have always been an immediate hit. Also continuing the trend of outstanding holiday releases, the 2018 version of the Concord was supposedly Nike’s biggest release ever.
The 2016 version of the Jordan 4 White Cement tops our list of most iconic Jordan sneakers of the 2010’s. Image courtesy of NiceKicks.com.
1. Jordan 4 Retro White Cement (2016): Finally to round out our list, Jordan Brand released an all-time classic just in in time for NBA All-Star weekend 2016 complete with iconic “Nike Air” branding. To me, the white cement 4 is not only an iconic sneaker of the 2010’s, but also one of the most iconic sneakers of the late 80’s and early 90’s. With it wing-like straps, grey and black cement speckles and vibrant red Jumpman logo, this is truly one of my favorite sneakers of all time. It really is a perfect shoe from feel to look and that is why it tops my list for best Jordan retro of the 2010’s.
Well that does it for my personal top three list of Jordans from the 2010’s, leave me a comment below with your favorite! Stay safe and stay fly out there y’all.
Caption: Kanye West wearing the Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 V2 “Zebra” during a performance at Guaranteed Rate Field in July 2017. This Adidas Yeezy Boost V2 is one of the most popular sneakers all-time and immediately sold-out upon release in 2017. Image via of http://www.UrbFash.com
In the years since I graduated from college in 2015, I have undergone a massive change in my life. No I have not found that ever elusive secret underground tunnel to London or discovered a new diet to grant me eternal abs, but rather my love for tennis shoes has blossomed. Wait, tennis shoes you ask? Yes, tennis shoes, or sneakers, kicks, trainers, whatever you want to call them. In my esteemed opinion, tennis shoes are the most glorious accessory you can own and this is my ode to them.
My passion for shoes has long been an ongoing theme in my life, but for this blog I want to explore how this burgeoning hobby became more of a financial asset that I continue to add to as often as I can. You see, shoes nowadays are big business thanks to the likes of tastemakers Kanye West (the Adidas and Nike Yeezy versions), Virgil Abloh and his Off-White collaboration with Nike, and of course the classic Air Jordan silhouettes that never go out of style, at least the OG (original versions) of editions one through 14. These shoes can vary in price but some go as high as $79,000 which is the asking price for a pair of Nike Low SB Paris Dunks on StockX which bills itself as the sneaker stock market of sorts. While I myself do not own such a pair, it is truly fascinating to see how you can collect tennis shoes in the same vein as classic art, wine or vinyl records. Sneakers have a massive following on the internet and everyone from YouTube stars to social media bloggers have an opinion, it just goes to show that if you follow your passion, sometimes the money will follow.
While I want to go more in-depth in an article to follow about the cultural and business significance (the Air Jordan 11’s, anyone?) of some of my favorite sneakers, there is no shortage of content nowadays about sneaker reselling. There are dozens of accredited YouTube vloggers who review the hottest releases coming out on a weekly basis and companies like Complex have made multiple shows showcasing just how wide sneakers are connected to pop culture. In fact, Complex’s “Sneaker Shopping” series might be the best example of just how insanely high these shoes can be valued at and how buying them in clusters can be more than a brand new car! Indeed when a rapper like Future spends $38,971.85 on sneakers and clothing or NBA player P.J. Tucker drops $33,283.10 at Flight Club you know that this can certainly become a substantial business.
Now before we go forward, I would be remiss in saying I am not comparing you and I to multi-millionaire entertainers and athletes, but rather shedding a light on a topic you might not have had much interest in before. One of the best parts about wearing a pair of shoes is the connection you can have to another person that you might not have had before. Wearing a new pair of Air Jordan White Cement 4’s might mean you are a fan of Spike Lee’s “Do The Right Thing” or that you just love the story behind Michael Jordan wearing them in 1989. Whatever the case, each shoe can have a story to tell. In fact, dress shoes like Clarks have even been name-dropped by Staten Island’s Wu-Tang Clan in songs which goes to show how these brands have had such crossover appeal and economic resonance. Wu-Tang later collaborated with Clarks to drop their own pair of Wallabees in the 2010’s to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their iconic album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers).
While I absolutely want to shed more light on the sneaker reselling world and its economic connections to pop culture, I am afraid this is where we must bid adieu. So please at the end of this post I want you to write down your favorite shoes and wear them today. Also feel free to give me a shout out on Twitter with your favorite kicks on and I will send you mine. Everyone has a favorite pair of sneakers they have owned over time and each one has their own awesome story to share.
We all have heard of the old adage “a picture is worth a thousand words”, right? Well in the present day world, pictures are not the only forms of communication that make humans think and feel something. In our everyday lives, we find all kinds of ways to connect ourselves to the world around us. That means more avenues to tether ourselves to mainstream culture and relating it to our personal lives.
That’s why this blog is geared around our collective connections to pop culture (sports, entertainment, tennis shoes, movies, music, etc.) and how they can tie back into our personal lives, or in this case, how culture ties into business as a whole and how it can relate to your own company.This blog is going to be filled with examples of characters, both real and fictional, and their journeys navigating the sometimes treacherous corporate world. These stories will be going over the mundane turned comical (Office Space) to the eternally changing world of social media and its impact on future generations (YouTube vloggers). Indeed, business and pop culture have found multiple ways to intertwine themselves over the decades — do you think Air Jordans are popular by accident? Each story or anecdotal tale has a foundational core of a protagonist or protagonists striving to make money at the end of the day, and hopefully changing the world for the better.
While each post on this blog will tell a different event from industries as disparate as the NFL to the dry deserts of northern Nevada, they all share a common thread of stories offering a distinct glimpse into how their business functions and how it can change over time. For each post I will be going over a new tale and how it can potentially relate back to your business in terms of lessons learned and things to say and do. Plus who doesn’t like talking about sports and music? For every entertainer or superstar athlete, there is a story behind them and how they developed their business. There are also the events of everyday people and how their lives are typically connected to their business for better and possibly for worse.
It seems as though everyone is connected to some sort of social media platform whether it be your eccentric aunt on Facebook or a former classmate from middle school finding YouTube fame. All of these individuals are attached to an outlet that brings them closer to the collective consciousness of the culture around them. Indeed even those stories can add value to a business owner’s next great grassroots marketing plan or a new strategy to help grow a certain demographic. Maybe you will find some useful pieces of information in this blog or a new tactic to apply in your business. Hopefully you’ll run across some topics you’ve never heard of before or just a post to kill some time while you are in the airport.
Regardless, thank you for coming and visiting my blog and I hope you enjoy the posts inside.
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