Sneakers trample record

● The Kanye West sneakers that sent athletic shoes strutting down fashion runways sold for $1.8m (R25.5m), a new world record price for a pair of sneakers, Sotheby’s announced on Monday.

The US rapper’s 2008 “Grammy worn” Nike Air Yeezy samples were prototypes for a line developed by West and Mark Smith for Nike. They were revealed during West’s performance at the 2008 Grammy awards.

The buyer was sneaker-investing platform RARES, which allows users to invest in sneakers by buying and trading shares in them.

The private sale shattered the auction record for sneakers, far above the $560,000 that Sotheby’s scored in May 2020 for a pair of 1985 Air Jordan 1s, designed for and worn by basketball legend Michael Jordan. The black leather size 12 Nike Air Yeezy 1 prototypes have a Yeezy forefoot strap and the brand’s signature Y medallion lace lock in pink.

West ended his collaboration with Nike in 2013 and took the brand to adidas, where the Yeezy brand brought in an estimated $1.7bn in sales in 2020, according to Forbes.