Advice from fellow ex-sneakerheads

I'm 29 and I quit collecting back in 2007.  I stopped buying Nikes and Jordans in general, because of many issues, such as ethical issues with how Nike conducts its business and that the quality of Jordans kept going down.  The first Jordans I've bought since 07 are the Concords; those are the first Jordans I've bought since the Fire Red IIIs in 2007.  And yes, I'm definitely wearing them.  



I'm still done with collecting though.  If I do cave in and buy another pair of Nikes or Jordans, it's definitely to wear them.  I just look at shoes, I don't need to have them in my closet if I'm not going to wear them.  Aside from the Concords, there is basically only 1 shoe that I'll buy right now, the Fire Red IIIs with Nike Air.

As you get older, the chances for you wearing Jordans just get less and less.  I mainly wear my Js on the basketball court or when I'm lounging around in sweats.  There's also a certain connotation of wearing Jordans out for a night on the town, whether people want to admit it or not.  Jordans just don't go very well with my personal style of dress for the most part.
 
when sneaker prices, people STILL being robbed and killed for sneakers, and overall decline in quality started coming to my attention in 07-08 thats when I stopped. I figured the appeal of the game wasn't there anymore and it was just a phase for me.

I figured I matured and I saw that there were better pursuits to fill my time, but I enjoyed my sneakerhead phase very much...it taught me how to sell, how to research and buy..etc. there are still some sneakers that I still want if they were ever retro'd right...*cough* griffey GD 3/4ths
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*cough* but I started using my money towards more mature endeavors...like books and gaining knowledge about something I was interested in...and food.
 
Originally Posted by Jking0821

Originally Posted by IronHorse

the final straw was the whole concord hype, that made me realize that I was just another member of the flock as I tried to secure my pairs 
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This was sort of my sentiment as well.  The hype in general is killing it for me. 

And when you have a 9-5 and can't wear sneakers to work you honestly just don't have time to wear 90% of your kicks.  My rotation is basically nike frees to work out/run in.  Then black cement 3s and white cement 3s with every casual outfit.  Still love shoes but when its now become next to impossible to get a shoe i want....i basically just don't care anymore. 
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This.
 
I'am 25 and I started collecting in 2001.  Lost interest since the Grapes.  I have been managing my $$  a lot better and I focus on more important things.  I do purchase a pair here and there, but I tend to look for the older retros.  For example, when the 2011 cement 3s released I was hunting for the 2003's on ebay and managed to purchase DS pairs for less than 200$.  I doubled up on a few kicks and got other pairs I have always wanted.  I'am pretty much done now, only pair I want.... Black Supreme Low.  I think going to the mall with my 99 cement IV's and having dudes tell me that my kicks are fake was kind of like...wow.  or when the guy at Shoe Palace said my Fire red Nike 5's were fake because they dont have the jumpman in the back..  pure lulz but I just ignore it.  Fool was wearing those Foam styled 1's.
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 Not to mention he looked like a b-grade lil bow wow.


In the end, I end up using my money for things I need.  If I dont need anything, I simply save my $$ for future things/emergencies.  Not only did I lose interest in kicks, but fixing up my car too.  I think we just grow out of things when we start seeing more of the real world and I prefer not getting stomped on for some crappy quality Jordans that you gotta camp out 12hrs for.

I'am looking into buying a house this year and upgrading my car. 
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It's funny how I have all these heaters, but when it comes down to it I end up wearing beaters.  I have been rocking my Undefeated Poormans A LOT.  Only missing the OG black pair
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-UNDFT
 
Originally Posted by kdawg

 Do what you want with your money but whatever 'thing' is your thing at the moment doesn't really matter.
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this...whether u cop or not, life goes on...+$#+ aint that serious
its a time and place to dress accordingly. i cant say i'll ever stop coppin kicks, but my dress up game is on point too 
 
I lost interest in dunks first around 07 then all sneakers around 09... I'm 30 now and cop ONLY kicks I love and even then I'm not fiending for it at full price...Between me and us, I only stick with Ralph Lauren and air force ones... Classic, mad colors, and styles to mix and match... My wife is more of a sneaker head than me honestly... And I'm cool with that...All my money now goes into my dodge charger and fixing my crib.
 
I stopped collecting sneakers around the age of 17 when I became more focused on copping the +%#@. I realized that no matter how exclusive my sneakers were they probably weren't going to help me get laid.
 
Originally Posted by kdawg

Next you'll realise that the whole 'adult clothes' game doesn't actually mean anything either.

Do what you want with your money but whatever 'thing' is your thing at the moment doesn't really matter.
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Thanks for the heads up
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Originally Posted by kdawg

Next you'll realise that the whole 'adult clothes' game doesn't actually mean anything either.

Do what you want with your money but whatever 'thing' is your thing at the moment doesn't really matter.
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For real...only cop what you like and spend how you want...forget what ppl say...
 
Originally Posted by 4wrestling

No offense, but you're 30 years old and just realizing you need more adult clothes?
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Trust me. I know so many people (including me to a certain degree) that still wear clothes as if they are still in high school. I only started wearing corporate clothing for 3 years now and I hated it at the time but now I am okay with it now. If it wasn't for my job, I'd still wear sneakers on the daily.
 
Started in '01 and stopped in '08.

My interest was in dunks and air maxes. The quality of build, material and creativity of dunks were on a whole different level, from the Hazes, to the buttery leather of the cali's; all of the releases were exciting, until Nike started saturating the market with whatever trash design they can come up with. The replies of "easy pass, basura and trash" now flood the new release topics of NT.

I shifted my attention to Air Maxes, more specifically AM 90s. I acquired my grails, the DQMs, as well as my classics, the limes, pythons, infrareds, safaris, etc. Nike started release/re-release some amazing AMs, but for some reason, none of which made its way to the states, as they would be JD sports exclusive. The lasers stuck out to me the most. A few months or a year down the road, Nike releases the lasers, which couldn't even compare to the JD release (imo).

The last pair of Nikes I bought were the CDP IVs which were my jordan grails.

I've been selling the majority of my collection ever since. Looking back at it, though it was fun, I can't believe how much money I've spent on shoes, I'm just glad the ones that I bought held their value and I was either able to sell for breaking even if not a little bit of profit.

Back then, it was about breaking necks (as silly as it may sound, I'm not ashamed
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), creating outfits, and just talking to knowledgable sneakerheads whom you share a unique hobby with.

Either I've grown up or the tight-knit camaraderie of sneaker enthusiasts has changed to a bunch of resellers looking to make a quick buck or some loud-mouthed kids that haven't a clue about the history of sneakers but just buy shoes for the hype.

As of now, I'm good with my IVs and a couple of my AMs and dunks. These shoes are just a nice luxury that I don't look to invest all too much money into anymore.
 
Nah but what did it of for me was, Idk I guess having alot of kicks is the cool thing to be right now. With all the hype and bs I toned it down alot. 
I remember when I used to rock some shoes and people used to tell me "them joints is old but fresh"  "yo those are mad old righ?"  but now its like they know the exact shoe that im wearing the colorway the nickname the year it came out etc.. 
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get out of the game and get out fast! the less things you have the more time you have to focus on goals rather than possessions. im happier now that life is minimal and simple....just like my fave kicks. key is quality not quantity grasshoppers
 
My tastes just changed, really. I never saw myself wearing Converse three years ago, but now Chuck Taylors are my go to shoe. They're classic. And I think that's my emphasis on fashion now. Classic pieces of clothing and accessories that are timeless so they last a long time. With sneakers, you'd get hyped about two or three new releases each month. Not only is that a ton of money, but once you have 60+ pair of sneakers you barely find yourself wearing the ones you bought two months ago. It all started to seem so pointless. It was a mental thing, I guess.

I still like to buy a pair here or there, but I refuse to do lineups or camp outs. Either I'll get an early hookup for a little more than retail or I'll just miss out. It's not a big deal. I still have friends very much into sneakers and I still like to check out the blogs/magazines.
 
I do my best to only buy what I like, and even then I need to be selective. I'm 31 and will be plunking down some big money on an engagement ring in a few weeks. I'm the only one amongst my friends not married, gotta grow up sometime (not that "married" automatically = "mature", but it is what it is).

I know there's a lot of heat I'll be passing on this year: wc 4s, obsidian 12s, possibly Columbias...but what I already have is MORE than sufficient for the average person.I got my two pairs of Concords last month, really all I ever wanted out of this "game".
 
Originally Posted by 4wrestling

No offense, but you're 30 years old and just realizing you need more adult clothes?
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You can reply like a db if you like, but what I meant was that I needed to put more investment into my adult clothing game instead of having thousands of dollars worth on sneakers in my closet.

I'd bet the majority of sneakerheads out there have a more valuable kick game when they compare it to their gear.
 
mrkittles20 , man im sorry to hear that..that would have realllly hurt my feelings if my own fam robbed me like that..im glad u moved on..it was for the best
 
Real talk. When I was in middle school and highschool I was HUSTLIN and GRINDING for those kicks and for those supplements and training equipments for basketball. Once I realized the amounts of oppression and lack of ethics in Nike, as well as the level of ******ed politics and lifestyle involved in professional sports, I gave up on that passion. But I refocused that same energy and work ethic into something else that could benefit my life and bring me joy. And every since then I have been on a non stop mission to take over the world.

Basically, take the skills you learned from this hobby/passion and put it to better use.
 
I'm starting to get to the point in my life that the whole sneaker thing is getting played out to me. I think what happened was when I was younger, I didn't have the cash to get the shoes I wanted, and my folks were NEVER going to pay $140 for a pair of Js. When I finally got a decent job, I was buying Jordans, Pennys, and any other thing that caught my eye like a mad man. Now that I'm almost 31, I find myself hardley wearing any of my shoes. 90% of my collection just sits in their boxes in my closet. Lately all I wear are Air Max 2009s and I might throw on a pair of Foams if I get the itch. I was crazy amped for the Playoff 13s and the Black Cement 3s, and I have only worn each of them once. Same goes for the White Cement, True Blues, Bordeaux, Flu Games, and Varsity 6s. I was hyped for all of them, and I have only worn them 1-2 times each.  I was on a mission to get the Cool Greys, finally copped them off a seller here on NT for $190, and I have only worn them twice in 3 months.

My job is business casual Monday-Thursday. On Friday you can wear jeans, a polo, and sneakers. So I wear my Js to work, and honestly, I feel out of place. Almost like I'm a little kid or something, and people are looking at me like "look at this grown man wearing basketball shoes to work".

Releases like the Concord ordeal just push me further away from the shoe game. I'm too old to be standing in line with the teeny-boppers and dealing with crowds all over a pair of sneakers that I won't wear but a few times in the next year.  I recently sold 4 pairs of my lesser-used Jordans on here, and I don't miss them at all. Luckily I have a really good job, and I get paid well, so I don't have to put all my chips into saving for a shoe or what-not, but $160+ per pair is outlandish.
 
its not the same..even though im a youngin, 21, the peak years for sneakers for me was 03- till the first dmp pack dropped..although i didnt get all the sb's and dmp packs..it just seem more fun beasting over kicks with people who actually respected the culture..
 
Same here . I'm slowly getting out of the game. I still buy basketball shoes for basketball but as far as collecting Im about to quit on that.

It just cost too much money nowadays especially with Nike price increase across the board and i've lost interest in general

Like OP said. I rather spend money on something else like stepping up my wardrobe or put that money into investment etc

Turning 28 soon this year and realize there are more important things in life out there and i don't want to miss them
 
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