Sneakers Are A Better Investment Than Stocks

Sneakers, a better financial investment than stocks?

No way.

Impossible.

Keep reading…

By now, most people are well aware that wearable fashion—clothes, shoes, bags, purses, and cosmetic jewelry—has very little resale value and is not considered a real financial asset.

Sneakers are the exception.

For folks like 25-year-old Sam Sheffer, shoes are part fashion and part financial investment. Over the past 10 years, he estimates that he has spent thousands of dollars maintaining and updating his sneaker collection. He says it’s actually a safer bet than buying stocks.

“There’s not one pair of sneakers that I bought that has gone down in value,” Sheffer said. “There are some shoes I spent $200 on that I can get $800 for.”

The sneaker market is surging.

Just last year, the U.S. sneaker industry grew 8 percent to $17 billion and the resale market is estimated to be just over $1 billion a year.

Campless, a company that has dubbed themselves the “sneakerhead data company”, follows and provides analysis on more than 13 million eBay auctions. They report on a wide variety of sneaker statistics. According to their website, at premium resale value some sneakers are resold for as much as 4,000 percent above their the original price.

There are currently no other financial investments reporting that kind of return.

The craze is so big, there are specialty stores that only sell limited edition and hard-to-find sneakers.

The popularity of the sneaker has even given rise to conventions solely dedicated to all things sneaker– which take place all across the country.

What’s behind this phenomenon?

Sue Boyle, owner of Rime—a popular apparel and shoe retail boutique in New York City, says the sneaker culture started in the 80s when Nike teamed up and collaborated with Michael Jordan to create the Air Jordan line of shoes.

It exploded from there.

Sneakers are now considered high fashion.

Now you’re even seeing women starting to wear them.

Superstars—actors, sports stars, models, singers and musicians—have also contributed considerably to this ever growing sensation. Fans will pay top dollar to own a pair of celebrity endorsed kicks.

Take the Fenty shoe for example, which is the result of a collaboration between Puma and singer Rihanna. Once released, they sold out in just three hours.

Sneakers with the highest resale value:

Nike—specifically “Jordan’s”– has this market cornered. Nike currently holds all 10 spots on Footwear News’ list of top ten sneakers with the highest percentage of resale markups.

Below is the current list of shoes with the highest resale value:

• No. 1: Jordan 1 OG (1985) which originally retailed for $65 but now goes for $2,715. That is a 4,075 percent markup.
• No. 2: Jordan 2 Retro Eminem (The Way I Am), marked up 3,285 percent, to $3,723, from its original $110 price.
• No. 3: The Nike Dunk SB Low Staple NYC Pigeon is up 2,729, at $5,657, from the original price of $200
• No. 4: Nike Roshe Run is marked up 2,567 percent, to $2,000, from $75
• No.5: Jordan 4 OG White Cement (1989), up 1,994 percent, to $2,303, from its initial selling price of $110
• No. 6: Air Max 1 Kid Robot (2005), is currently up 1,844 percent, to $2915, from $150
• No. 7: Jordan 10 Retro Drake OVO is up 1,700 percent, and selling for $4,050 on eBay. Its original retail price was $226
• No. 8: KD IV Nerf, reselling for $2,132, which is 1,606 percent higher than its original retail price of $125
• No. 9: Air Yeezy Red October, resale value up 1,512 percent, carrying a $4,030 price tag, up from the original price of $250
• No. 10: Jordan 5 Retro Quai 54 Friends and Family, marked up 1,511 percent to resell for $2,416, from the original asking price of $150