Image via Complex Original
11.
Each year, analysts predict that the sneaker bubble will soon burst. And each year, the market reacts by growing bigger and bigger. More specifically, the resell market continues to expand as a billion-dollar industry, without any hints of a slowdown. Everybody knows certain shoes are good for a quick cash flip. But some rare, select kicks are the shoe equivalent of a winning Lotto ticket. We’re talking shoes that require extreme blessings from the plug or the willingness to sell an organ to purchase. These aren’t your ordinary sneakers, since they’re friends-and-family versions or exclusive drops limited by geographic location.
The good people at StockX provided us with the figures for their average resale values. The rankings are determined by these prices and include all sneakers released this year. Here are 2018’s 10 most expensive shoes.
10.Air Jordan V Retro “Paris Saint-Germain” (Friends and Family)
Average resell value: $2,188
In 2018, Jordan Brand spread its wings by joining forces with French professional soccer club Paris Saint-Germain for the former’s first-ever football club partnership. The full collection included an Air Jordan V that dropped at retail, but this special edition headlined the occasion. PSG players and friends received the white-based colorway with cross-branding to highlight the team and the company. Coming in at just over $2K, the pair is a steal compared to many of the other sneakers featured on this list.
9.Adidas Futurecraft 4D (Friends and Family)
Average resale value: $2,364
Adidas keeps pushing the envelope with its Futurecraft project. The Three Stripes used light, air, and its Digital Light Synthesis technology to create the future of footwear. Just like any new tech, this early entry model had people paying way above retail for pairs. You know, because exclusivity can be costly. Thankfully, Adidas started releasing more 4D kicks, so smart shoppers can find comparable options at better prices and save themselves loads of cash in the process.
8.Air Jordan III Retro Quai54 2018 (Friends and Family)
Average resale value: $2,555
Jordan Brand’s near-15-year history with the Quai54 streetball tournament has produced many coveted sneakers. But none may be more exclusive than this colorful version of the Jordan III. First seen on the feet of Justin Timberlake, these required a French connection and deep pockets to catch in the wild. With their eye-catching colors, they’re flashy enough to warrant spending the extra cash to floss.
7.Parra x Nike Air Max 1 2018 (Friends and Family)
Average resale value: $2,772
Good things tend to happen when Nike gives Piet Parra the green light to work his magic on shoes. As part of his second collab with the brand, the Dutch artist crafted a Swoosh-less version of his multicolor, multi-print, multi-material Air Max 1 that was a hit with footwear fans—they’re like Air Max art for the feet.
6.Air Jordan V Retro “Fresh Prince” (Friends and Family)
Average resale value: $3,500
As if Will Smith didn’t already live his best life, Jordan Brand blessed the Fresh Prince with a very special pair of Air Jordan Vs for his 50th birthday. The OG Grapes got flipped into a gold and satin tribute to Bel Air’s favorite nephew. Unfortunately, only 23 raffle winners scored a pair—along with a chance to hang with Smith for a day. The rest of us were left to settle for Nick at Nite reruns and the laceless general release of the shoe, which isn’t much consolation, honestly.
5.Air Jordan III Retro UNC PE
Average resale value: $3,800
For years, it was the basketball team at Michael Jordan’s alma mater that got all the best kicks. In 2017, the Tar Heels football team also joined the Jordan Brand family and started getting their own special shoes. Looking at these PEs makes you wish you had practiced ball a bit harder as a kid so you could have been a member of UNC’s gridiron gang and owned a pair. Or that you had the money they command on the secondary market. With the sneaker’s value so high, it’s wack that Tar Heels players were suspended for selling theirs. Let the kids eat, NCAA.
4.Undefeated x Nike Kobe 1 Protro “Flight Jacket”
Average resale value: $4,123
The Kobe 1 Protro “Flight Jacket” was extremely hard to get your hands on, with a meager 10 pairs released via raffle for the opening of Undefeated’s new location in Tokyo. But just winning the raffle wasn’t enough. The lucky “winners” had to compete in a basketball challenge for a chance to secure the shoes. Talk about jumping through hoops just to get some sneakers.
3.Colette x Air Jordan I Retro High (Friends and Family)
Average resale value: $4,539
What better way to bid farewell to the French footwear powerhouse than with a special Air Jordan I colorway? Jordan Brand crafted these blue and white beauties for Colette as the shop prepared to close its doors after 20 years of business. The scarcity of these makes the chances of owning them about as slim as getting struck by lightning while riding a unicorn.
2.Adidas Pharrell NMD Hu China Pack “Happy” (Friends and Family)
Average resale value: $4,911
How hard were these to buy? Well, they only released in China in a quantity of 300. The country’s population hovers around 1.3 billion, so just do the math to determine the odds of getting a pair. Many of Pharrell’s NMD models are hot-ticket items on the secondary market and consistently make yearly top 10 lists. This particular NMD Hu features “Happy” written in English on one shoe and in Chinese on the other. “Happy” also describes how it must feel to own such a rare pair.
1.Undefeated x Nike Kobe 1 Protro “Purple” (Friends and Family)
Average resale value: $5,150
Like its counterpart on this list, the purple version of the Nike Kobe 1 Protro by Undefeated released in extremely small quantities. The fact that they were only available through the Hong Kong location made acquiring the shoes that much more difficult. Anyone fortunate enough to snag a pair dedicated to the Lakers great now has a valuable gem in their collection.