“The Greatest Sneaker Show on Earth” read a large sign overseeing the hall floor within the Anaheim Convention Center on Saturday. December 8th. SneakerCon headed to Los Angeles for the weekend to host their notable event.
Sneaker Con is the one of world’s most premier sneaker shows, providing a space for vendors and attendees to buy, sell, and trade some of the most sought-after footwear in the game. Since its inception, Sneaker Con has held 100+ events, in 30+ cities worldwide, attended by 100,000+ sneakerheads.
Within the convention center, the floor was transformed into “The Pit” for the weekend’s event. Booths were set up through out the floor by vendors, traders and others with a foothold in the streetwear industry. At each booth you could find a variety of items, whether it be the latest Yeezy drop or a rare pair of Jordan’s. Sneaker Con has evolved from not only focusing on shoes but to clothing as a whole. From Gucci shirts and exclusive Supreme hoodies to collectible items such as the infamous Travis Scott x Reese’s Puffs collaboration cereal box all your street gear needs could be met at Sneaker Con.
One of the stands that stuck out to me personally was the Undisputed Sole station. Undisputed Sole is a sneaker collector, primarily popular through Instagram. While venturing around Sneaker Con, I was able to come across their stand and more specifically a shoe I have lusted over for a while now. The Nike Air Make 97 “Jesus Shoes” aka The Holy Water Air Maxes were on sale at their booth. This shoe has ranged from $1,600 to $4,000. The light blue combination versus the white complexion of the shoe along with the incorporation of a gold cross in the laces made for one of the most aesthetically pleasing shoes I have seen.
While at Sneaker Con we were also able to catch up with one of Hollywood’s hottest clothing companies, ThreadBeast. During my conversation with ThreadBeast’s COO, Aneel Sethi I was able to delve deeper into the company’s background and how they operate. They are an innovative personal stylist house where shoppers can subscribe to their services and are blessed monthly with handpicked gear based on the subscriber’s preferences. Aneel and his team of stylists have been blessing consumers with their hand-picked gear since 2015. The fact that you get gear monthly that is hand-picked for you and your style is well worth the investment, if you have not looked into ThreadBeast yet I highly suggest you do.
Sneaker Con has taken a step up from strictly trading shoes and gear but rather incorporated an entertainment aspect to the trade show. The inclusion of a DJ, food stands, and booths from popular companies such as Monster energy drinks speaks to the fact that this event is bigger than shoes. Various vendors have events and challenges that draw crowds and the attention of consumers.
The SupBro Spray stand generated a large amount of attention from crowds. SupBro specializes in protection for sneakers, their product line consists of: Sneaker Wipes, Cleaner Kits, Renew Pen, Crease Killers, and Collection Crates. They had a vertical jump tester and once attendees completed the vertical jump test, they received a complimentary bag. The convention was filled with these yellow bags incorporating a graffiti type font reading Sneaker Con in big letters. Everyone wants some type of souvenir when attending a monumental event such as this so the fact that SupBro took the initiative to offer an item like this was innovative to say the least.
Footaction, a streetwear company suppling access to the latest shoes, clothing and accessories from Jordan, Nike, New Era, adidas and more had a compelling station as well. On top of their name prominent gear and shoes being offered for sale, Footaction’s booth had included a large neon sign which read “FOOTACTION”. Attendees gravitated toward their stand to take pictures and document their Sneaker Con experience.
On the floor there was a basketball court for attendees to go show off their skills. The day was made even more interesting when Lavar Ball, CEO of Big Baller Brand made an appearance. Lavar Ball is one of the more compelling figures in American media. He made his name through fearless statements throughout 2016. He has claimed that he could have beaten Michael Jordan one-on-one in college and that his son, Lonzo Ball is more talented than two-time NBA champion Steph Curry. Attendees were lucky to get a glimpse of Lavar and his antics during an interview hosted by Sneaker Con. The interview was of course accompanied by some of Lavar’s bold statements such as guaranteeing one of his son’s, Lamelo Ball will be the first pick in the NBA draft and that he would love to punch former NBA all-star, Charles Barkley in the face.
Sneaker Con collaborated with renowned streetwear designer and icon, Aleali May, for an exclusive merchandise collaboration that was only be available at the LA event. May also participated in a Sneaker Con Conversation on the main stage, giving fans an insight into her career trajectory, and the current state of streetwear in the fashion industry. Other guests included Candace Parker, TwoJKicks, Yeezy Busta, Blazendary and more.
Being able to enhance the experience of trading shoes and clothes is one of the biggest aspects that differentiates Sneaker Con as one of the most prominent events in the industry. Sneaker Con, founded by Alan Vinogradov & YuMing Wu, next heads off to China for December 21st-22nd. As for coming back to Los Angeles, a date has not been released but when they are back in town make sure to get your ticket.
