Today’s Market Trend? Parity
Sneakerheads, you can exhale. Gone are the days of worrying about ending up on the wrong side of the “What are those” meme. This meme first became popular in 2015 when a user uploaded a video to Vine of a man who asks a police officer about his work boots in a startled manner. The video quickly amassed millions of views and became the primary method of trolling those who were rocking unkempt or off-brand sneakers. 2015 was a year that saw Jordan brand drop the Chicago, UNC, and Shattered Backboard 1s, Adidas released the ultra boost and the first Adidas Yeezy model, and Nike basketball was at its peak. Life was good but straying too far beyond these options risked public shaming and internet humiliation. In the year 2024 Vine has long since been absent from relevancy and so has this closed-mindedness surrounding footwear choices. Recent years in sneaker culture have been defined by parity. People have pointed to New Balance’s rise in popularity, or Salomon becoming cool as evidence of this. However, it reaches much further than this. It’s not that simply more brands are thought of or accepted as cool than in previous eras, but sneakerheads as a whole have become more receptive to alternative sneaker choices. Left-of-center options which once may have stripped you of your sneakerhead status have not only been given the stamp of approval but are markers of nuanced taste. Basketball footwear provides an excellent case study for this shift in what’s considered appropriate sneaker selections.
Over the lifetime of basketball, there have been two primary sneaker chapters, before Michael Jordan and after. Before MJ was defined by Converse, first the ‘All Star’ then the ‘Weapon.’ Adidas had success with the “Top Ten” but Converse ultimately led the sneaker race. That is until a fledgling Nike gave a kid from Wilmington, North Carolina a signature shoe line, paid his fines for violating NBA dress code policy, and forever changed basketball footwear. This ushered in the second chapter of basketball sneakers. Nike quickly left all others in the dust and from 1984 on it dominated the basketball market. Other brands had moments, Reebok with the “Pump” and the “Question.” And1 had the “TaiChi.” Adidas broke through with the “Crazy Light.” In totality, though, Nike has remained affixed to the throne atop the basketball sneaker landscape. Basketball is a game of evolution, the various schemes, styles, shapes, and sizes that it has embraced throughout its history is proof enough that different sneakers would find their way onto the hardwood. Although the kingdom remains under Nike’s rule the demographic of its inhabitants has become richly diverse. Nike’s loosening grip on the basketball world began in the late 2010s. The product got stale, lacking variation and innovation. This along with footwear technology becoming more widely available opened the door for other brands to begin emerging. Perhaps the most important catalyst of the movement was Dwayne Wade. He signed a deal with Li Ning, a Chinese sneaker brand. He and the brand have since developed a branch of the company centered around his signature product. The Way of Wade line has continued to advance even after Dwade’s retirement from basketball. Per KICKS CREW, a global sneaker retailer Way of Wade now accounts for the second highest market share of performance basketball shoes in the US, behind only Nike. This quantitative data is the hard evidence behind what countless basketball fans have noticed when watching their favorite teams or players play. There is significant parity in the sneakers being worn on court.
In conjunction with athletes like Dwayne Wade leaving the big brands for alternative options, designers have also begun setting sail from Nike and Adidas to chart new paths. With this talent no longer allocated under one or two major companies, the sneaker market has seen an uptick in competitive design. Of late, one of the more notable designers to leave a big brand is Aaron (AC) Cooper. He left Nike in 2019 and while not everyone may know his face, his work is extremely popular. The 1990s is often considered the greatest era of Nike Basketball, and Cooper’s work played a substantial role in this. He is responsible for the signature lines of Charles Barkley, Kevin Garnett, and Scottie Pippen. Since leaving Nike, AC has been involved in a number of things but his most recent project has the sneaker world buzzing. A startup sneaker brand EQLZ just released their first performance basketball shoe the EQZL 247, designed by none other than Aaron Cooper. Inspired by nature, and designed to become an extension of the player’s foot, the EQLZ 247 is a remarkable product. The care, detail, and thought process that went into the product is evident. To check it out in detail visit the EQLZ Website. The shoes feature a blend of materials and technology but all shoes do, what sets this one apart is its design ethos. It is clear Cooper and the EQLZ team didn’t set up to simply design a basketball shoe, but to solve a problem. With a specific vision in place, the resulting product is one that stands out in every way. Numerous sneaker reviewers online have dubbed it the best basketball shoe of 2024. Whether EQLZ and other brands like it have the staying power to remain relevant in the years to come remains to be seen. One thing is certain, spurred on by market shifts they have brought new energy to sneakers. Aaron Cooper’s influence on sneakers is undeniable, in an era of sneaker parity it is exciting to imagine what else can be created by him and others who benefit from the advantages that designing for and selling to open-minded sneakerheads brings.
In a year that will see the NBA crown its sixth different champion in six years, parity exists not only at the top of the win column but all the way down to the shoes on players’ feet. This trend is reflective of sneaker culture as a whole, from the hardwood to the pavement sneakerheads are embracing new options and stunting brands previously unwelcomed in the community. Over the past decade sneaker culture has grown considerably, the marketplace parity being observed today is a natural response to the influx of demand. Some companies are handling this better than others. Per Nike Fiscal Reports the brand did see an increase of two percent last year, compared to 5% last year. While still moving in the right direction, it has been tainted by nearly 750 jobs cut across two phases of layoffs. As the traditional brands continue to adjust, the newly cool brands such as Asics, and New Balance continue to find success. New Balance specifically has done a tremendous job of introducing a silhouette into the market each year. This has resulted in a record year of 6.5 billion in sales. Much of this growth can be attributed to the market shifts as 63% of customers on their website were new. Data from Footwear News Similarly, since 20201 Ascis has posted annual increases each year. This data from Companies’ Market Cap Brands like EQLZ has also contributed to this marketplace parity significantly. With smaller independent brands bringing immense quality to the market the bigger brands have been forced to respond. It cannot be overstated how important brands like EQLZ are to sneaker culture. They bring fresh energy and ideas not bridled by shareholder value to the products they release. They have to take risks to break through and as they begin to, it puts the traditional brands to the test. The competitiveness currently seen in the marketplace benefits the culture and the consumer. As brands jockey with one another, it is the sneakerheads who reap the rewards. Brands are forced to vie for the consumers’ attention and the result is that brands are releasing much more and higher quality product in an effort to hold the approval of the market. For a hobby associated with collecting this is a very favorable trend. Sneakerheads are living in a best-of-both-worlds scenario, the classics are still classics, and new selections are now considered cool. To quote Ferris Bueller, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” In this case, if you are a sneakerhead, look around. You don’t want to miss this.
