China cracks down on speculative trading in limited edition shoes, but ‘sneakerheads’ continue to fuel phenomenon

People’s Bank of China has said that speculative buying of limited edition trainers had become a problem and warned speculators against using more than a dozen online platforms. The growing popularity of sneaker trading has seen Sneaker Con launch its first event in Shanghai and US-based marketplace GOAT launch a China-specific app. — SCMP

In April, David Zuo’s students told him about the latest money making craze sweeping across China: reselling limited edition athletic shoes. Since then the 34-year-old Zhejiang sports teacher has made about 100,000 yuan (RM59,104) trading rare trainers online such as Nike Air Jordan’s and Adidas Yeezy’s.

The growth of digital platforms, fuelled by a nation with growing disposable income and a deep love for basketball, has created a buying frenzy in a secondary market of trading shoes much like stocks.