How the sneaker craze unites (and sometimes, divides) people in South Africa

Sneakers are more than just shoes for hip South Africa city dwellers. Photo: AFP

Queueing outside an upmarket Johannesburg clothing store, young fashion lovers hope to lay their hands on the latest sneakers to come out of the US.

For South Africa's city dwellers, sneakers are more than just shoes. As a marker of personality as well as social status, they are cared for and worn with pride, and youths compete to hunt down the rarest models from a market flooded with old and new sneakers – including many fakes.