There isn’t really an industry that sneakers haven’t had an impact on. From the obvious relationship with the sports world to the ever-growing partnership with the music industry. Even the gaming industry has recently joined the sneaker battle when Adidas added pro-gamer Ninja to its star-studded roster. And we have these partnerships to thank for some of the best sneakers we’ve seen recently. Some of which you could only dream of buying, while the others were attainable using a powerful sneaker bot like AIO Bot. And there’s one type of these partnerships will especially get to you if you very much if you’re a series or movie junkie.
Adidas x Game of Thrones
Release Date: 03-22-2019
At the time of writing this, it’s highly unlikely you haven’t heard of the megahit fantasy “Game of Thrones”. But even IF you weren’t one of the 19.3 million viewers who watched the finale you might like the sneaker collection inspired by the show.
The Adidas x GoT collection included 6 different color options of the iconic UltraBoost Silhouette. Each pair represented one of the main houses or entities of the show. So we have the house Targaryen, Lannister, and Stark shoes. In addition to a pair for the ever-so-creepy white walkers, one for mighty dragons, and one for the good men of the night’s watch.
The retail price ranged from $180 to $200, the usual for an Adidas Ultraboost pair. However, it’s the resale price that matters most here. The Adidas Game of Thrones sneakers are available for you to buy off reselling platforms. And you wouldn’t really need to spend any extra cash on them. In fact, if you’re lucky enough, you can save some bucks buying from StockX. So if you’ve just started binge-watching the show, don’t worry those sneakers aren’t going anywhere!
Nike Kyrie x SpongeBob
Release Date: 08-10-2019
If you got too fascinated by the Adidas x GoT collection, chill! Nike is up Adidas’ a$$ with some of the best sneakers inspired by our beloved TV shows. One of the most recent, and most fun, collaborations Nike worked on was the Kyrie x SpongeBob collection.
This collection celebrated the 5 main characters, each with their own colorway. Sponge Bob, Patrick Star, and Squidward are represented by the Nike Kyrie 5. While Mr. Krabs and Sandy Cheeks get to renew the Kyrie 2 low. But if we were to choose the best sneakers from this capsule it would be Spongebob’s 5s. The sneakers were accompanied by an apparel collection and 3 real awesome backpacks, in time for the back to school season.
Moneywise? The Nike Kyrie 5s retailed for $130 while the 2s sold for $120. In terms of resale, the Spongebob collection is making quite the statement. Considering how quirky they look, they’re making more money than some of the best sneakers in the game, scoring a net profit between 70 and 110%.
Adidas x Dragon Ball Z
Release Date: 09-29-2018 to 12-22-2018
A promising collaboration, gone wrong. For some reason, or more than a reason we thought this collection would make it to 2018’s best sneakers list. But it didn’t! Although the colorways, details, and overall silhouettes did deliver the message to some extent, the hype over these shoes was not up to the level. And sneakerheads were pretty vocal and visual about their opinion and shared custom designs that in their opinion would’ve done the collab more justice.
And we can blame this on high expectations, which is all we had when we first heard of the collab. Sneakers from this collection retailed for $110 to $150 and the resale price was just as shy. With the best sneakers to flip among them being Goku’s orange ZX 500 selling for around $300.
Nike x Stranger Things
Release Date: 06-27-2019 to 08-13-2019
Back to Nike! Aside from eccentricity and quirkiness, Nike’s done a great job with the more subtle Stranger Things collab. This partnership spanned along 3 separate drops, each featuring different sneakers and colorways. But the best sneakers among all were those of the Upside Down pack.
That last pack featured a pair of Kenny Cortez, 1 Air Tailwind 79, and a Blazer Mid. While the silhouettes are very much familiar and offer nothing new, it’s the secret feature that holds all the value.
The sneakers featured a sail woven-like textured uppers that hide an Upside Down layer underneath. The denim underlayer can be revealed by scratching or burning the uppers. These deceivingly simple shoes also feature printed insoles with graphics of plans and sketches, red branding on the tongue labels and embroidered heel, and white outsoles complete the design.
Retail Vs. Resale?
The Nike x Stranger Things capsules aren’t yours if you’re looking to start a business off reselling. But if you’re a fan of the show, you’ll happily rock a pair or two.
Reebok x Toy Story
Release Date: 2019
BAIT & Reebok did well! They did so well turning our memories into a sneaker reality, just before Toy Story 4’s release in 2019! So did Vans back in 2016.
This masterpiece comes in different colors for each foot. The left shoe is Buzz’s, with palettes of purple and green. The purple inner collar contrasts with the green heel pull tab. At the top of the shoe is a red Instapump button surrounded by black and yellow hazard stripes. “LIGHTYEAR” is over the green sidewalls, while red stripes appear at the vamp.
The right shoe, with the intricate details and bold colors, references Sheriff Woody. Along with black and white cow-patterns on the side panels, blue denim layers, and yellow accents, these are the best sneakers to ever represent a character so well. As a finishing touch, a red tongue tab and heel pull with mid-western dragonfly designs, referencing Woody’s iconic neckerchief.
Reebok went full-on exclusive with these. And rather than releasing them to the public only a handful of pairs saw the day of light, making them quite the catch. If you were friends & family.
Best Sneakers for us?
The ones with the Friends logo!
And a Major Shoutout goes to Nike for giving us all the feels with the Nike Kyrie 5 Friends sneakers. They released back in May and we’re still not over them. The colorway, the small details, and the logo on the heel. On POINT! oh and the pictures! The sneakers actually got a photoshoot resting so conveniently on the iconic orange sofa from the “Central Perk Café”.
These sneakers may not have gained as much attention as the generation-defining sitcom, but real fans must have copped and stored them somewhere safe.
It’s a Money Vs. Memories Thing!
As much as we say that the sneaker industry is driven by money and profit, reselling only makes up a part of this game. The other part? Well, it’s ruled by our memories and personal preferences as sneakerheads. So it makes sense that the best sneakers in this whole turmoil are the ones inspired by our favorite TV shows and movies.