5 minute read
sneaker sabotage
from Volume 5, Issue 2
by SMU Look
If you're not a sneaker-savvy person, here's a tip: Don’t mention Mellany Sanchez, Drake's former stylist and the original creative bots to a sneakerhead. Why? Because in the game of buying and director for the global streetwear brand Kith, acknowledges that selling limited-edition sneakers during an online drop, bots act sneaker resale is a part of the game. But she said it shouldn’t be like an invisible defensive force, interfering with fair play and the only game because it means “you're completely eliminating the preventing would-be buyers from scoring the shoes of their dreams. consumer who was ready to buy it at the first point.”
Bots can’t be detected, and they can’t be avoided. And if they’re Clearly the bots must be stopped, and it is up to the sneaker involved in a drop, the buyer will never win. But it wasn’t always this industry to prevent this sneaker sabotage. Sneaker brands must way. In the beginning, the path between the sneaker-obsessed buyer first work together rather than trying to act against bots indepenand the coveted kick was clear. dently. Then, they must jointly lobby for legislation to outlaw the
It all started with the Nike Air Jordan 1. When this shoe was released use of sneaker bots entirely. in 1985, it was prized for two reasons: It was named after basketball While some sneaker brands have attempted to address the bot legend Michael Jordan, and it cost $65 – a sizeable sum back in the problem, they’ve never teamed up to try working together. Their day. This is widely believed to be the moment when sneakers trans- unilateral approaches have only lasted until the next software formed into status symbols. update. Then it’s game on again for the bots.
Rob Drydek, a former professional skateboarder turned sneaker- For example, Nike has spent millions fighting bots. In 2015, it head, confirmed this view in the 2015 Amazon Prime documentary, launched its own sneaker drop app to better control bots, and Sneakerheadz. “There’s a handful of things that can define who you it later invested in Akamai, an anti-bot program, but neither are without saying a word,” he said, “and your shoes are one of them.” approach lasted.
The culture of acquisition-at- Berrics, a skating sneaker brand any-cost had officially begun. that sells shoes, tried to ward off
Long lines outside of sneaker- bots with a warning of sorts. sellers became commonplace, When it caught a bot during one leading some sneakerheads to set up camp days in advance of a The culture of of its drops, it used technology to trick it into spending $11,000 release to ensure they could score the must-have merch the moment acquisition-at- on a single pair of shoes, according to 2020 Highsnobiety article. the doors opened. But all was not lost if someone any-cost had Unfortunately, this tactic was more amusing than effective. didn’t get their shoes. There was another option: a reseller. This officially begun. Sneaker industry expert Matt Powell of NPD Group thinks involved finding someone who sneaker companies would be more did have a pair who would be will- effective if they worked together. ing to sell them – for a mark-up, of “It would behoove the brands to course. collaborate with each other and
With the advent of the Internet, sneaker releases, or drops, even- take their best practices to beat the bots,” he said. tually moved online. The intent was to democratize the process, Or, the sneaker industry could simply get the law involved. allowing sneaker lovers everywhere an equal chance to buy the Legislation that criminalizes the use of bots and attaches penallatest pair of coveted kicks, no camping gear required. But resellers ties to bot usage could be more effective than technology to stop also realized that they didn’t have to wait in line anymore either, the bots once and for all. and they started looking for ways to buy even more shoes. Not only Bots already go against the Terms and Conditions of many could the resellers make money by flipping more pairs, but if they brands’ websites, but punishing them is nearly impossible, accordcould buy up more of the release and keep it out of the hands of the ing to the Highsnobiety bot article. Unless they became illegal. regular sneaker buyers, they’d end up being the only sneaker-sale There’s actually some precedent for this strategy. In 2015, U2 game in town for those desperate for a pair. Which meant they performed at Madison Square Garden in New York, and tickets could jack up the prices even higher. disappeared faster than fans could buy them. The reason? Ticket
That’s when the bots began to f-up the game even more. bots. The resulting public rage resulted in the passage of the Better
A bot is a sophisticated software code designed to aid the owner Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act in 2016, making buying-by-bot illein purchasing limited-quantity goods. A sneaker bot’s purpose is to gal for concerts nationwide. Unfortunately, the law applies only buy as many pairs of sneakers during an online drop as possible, to tickets and cannot be extended to sneakers. as quickly as possible. Usually, a coder programs a bot and sells At least one sneaker retailer thinks sneakerheads would be on it to anyone who can afford one. In the case of sneakers, this is board for whatever the sneaker industry decided to do, especially often a high-volume reseller. A good sneaker bot can add-to-cart if their favorite brands were behind it. Noah Liddell, a part-owner and check out in as little as .2 seconds, according to a 2021 article of the Dallas Laboratory, a sneaker and streetwear retailer, thinks about bots in the London-based fashion magazine WTVOX. And that if Nike were to ask its followers to support its efforts to end it can do it over and over again. The result: The reseller wins, and bots, they would do it in a heartbeat: “It’s definitely a they say the average sneakerhead loses. ‘jump’ and the fans say ‘how high’ type of relationship.”
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Dress: Alice +Olivia, $395 Heels: Stylist’s Own Tuxedos: Rental, Price Upon Request
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Models: Ben Mandiya ‘24, Cameron Fitz ‘21, Szabolcs Váradi ‘24
Stylists: Isabel Meadows, Caroline King, Sinclair Jelleme, Emily
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