Back dooring is nothing new in the world of sneakers. Ever since limited/hype releases have been a thing, people have found ways to make as much profit as possible. Anyone who has been around sneakers for a year or longer knows about the dark side of sneakers and how much shady business goes on.
Major corporations and small businesses alike often don’t have the consumer’s best interest at hand. While more goes on than most people know, the first step to combating shady business is to first acknowledge that something unethical is going on.
Back Dooring and Shady Business Practices
Anyone who knows how sneaker shops work know that back dooring is nothing new. Sneakers are often sold to third parties or even other retailers before official release dates. Some stores back door to their own employees while others look to maximize profits. At the end of the day, sneaker stores will continue to back door sneakers or even apparel until they get caught. Sneaker culture gives certain stores a pass while holding other brands more accountable for the shady business practices.
Shady business practices are prevalent at a well-known sneaker and apparel store. When waiting out in line in previous experiences, certain employees would often let potential customers know they have one guess for a particular sneaker size. If that size was out of stock, the potential buyer had to go back in line to attempt to guess correctly. What retail stores make people play a guessing game? How does that encourage trust and loyalty between customers and retailers?
Hyped and exclusive sneakers are often glorified and put on a pedestal. This often leads to employees partaking in shady business practices. Some workers are pressured into back dooring for certain buyers while others do it without a blink of an eye or second thought.
The Dark Side of Reselling
Reselling has been around since commerce has been a thing in the world. Buy low, sell high. You can’t get much simpler than that. However, sneaker reselling often gets a bad reputation for various reasons.
First, sneaker resellers typically portray an image as greedy and power-hungry individuals. After countless hyped releases, people are seen with rooms full of sneakers strictly for selling; many sneaker enthusiasts miss out on exclusive releases and are left empty-handed.
Anyone can attempt to purchase exclusive sneakers, but few are usually successful. When the masses can’t even get a fair chance at buying new kicks, they will start to question the ethics of resellers first and sneaker brands second.
Also, the fact that big-time resellers often work directly with sneaker retailers adds to the mistrust between countless customers and major corporations. Some stores work with resellers who are willing to pay top dollar for early pairs and/or bulk pairs. These same stores portray false images to potential customers who are trying to do things the right way.
Major resellers get a bad rep for valid reasons. It frustrates countless sneaker enthusiasts who want sneakers for personal wear when they don’t feel they have a fair chance at purchasing particular pairs.
Resell culture will always be a thing, but a shift in sneakers provides more hope as of recently. Now, the average resale price of a hyped sneaker is typically not nearly as high as it would have been only a few years ago. Hopefully the tide can continue to sway in favor of enthusiasts who appreciate sneakers for years to come.
Dark Side Crashing Down
The dark side of sneakers will always be prevalent. The first step to addressing a problem is to first acknowledge the issue. Countless sneakerheads are aware of the dark side of sneakers. Now it is up to those who have a platform to use their voices in a productive way to raise awareness of the pressing issues in the sneaker community.
Anyone can call out the bad apples, but it takes many to address and bring down the top dogs. The sneaker community is generally supportive and welcoming; with enough will power and determination, the community can improve to be even more open and accepting of different styles, viewpoints, and perspectives.
Dark sides will always be around in virtually every industry, community, or group of individuals. Regarding sneakers, the dark side seems to be on the decline. The advantage is in the buyers’ hands at least for now; the sneaker market is clearly in favor of buyers. Resell prices are down and sneakers are more readily available than ever. There is a reason to be optimistic in regards to the sneaker world as a whole.
