While 2015 has had it’s follies in the sneaker world with broken promises, outrageous prices and overproduction, there were plenty of winners as well. As we head into 2016 we take a moment to reflect on the top 5 brands of last year.
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Maybe you didn’t notice, because it was easy to miss. So many hyped collaborations in 2015 lead to an almost instant burn-out. Botiques and brands used almost any excuse to throw another “limited” sneaker your way at $160-200 a pop. Brooks took another approach. Carefully thought out collaborations with beautiful themes and exquisite quality made Brooks king of the collabs for 2015 and our #5 biggest winner.A slick nike collaboration is nothing to scoff at but that isn’t why UNheardof Brand is 2015’s #4 biggest winner. The modest Cincinnati based boutique making Adidas’s stock list for Yeezys is by far a success on it’s own but the method UNheardof released them was unprecedented. Rather than fill up social media with spam contests, they gave out slots for those who participated in a local charity supplying sneakers for kids in need by partnering with chnk.org. Now that’s how you win in the sneaker community.Wait wasn’t Curry our #3 loser of 2015? Yes he was, but his loss is defined by his success. Curry became a household name by signing huge deals with Under Armour, Express and even Apple. Sure his brand took a stumble but you can’t fall from greatness without achieving it first. This without even factoring in an MVP, Championship and record setting undefeated streak. Curry is our #3 biggest winner of 2015.Many brands create hype with their collaborations, but none as successful as Supreme. A simple box logo slapped on a plain Hanes sweater can bring hundreds in the secondary market. Everything from keychains and duct tape all the way to Retro Jordans and Yankees gear. Every release is a zoo and prices are insane. This makes Supreme our #2 winner of 2015While we can call Yeezy Season 1 a disaster and the YZY sneaker releases dumpster fires, we can’t deny the #1 force of 2015. Jumping from Nike to Adidas was the best move for Kanye West as Yeezy sneakers outpaced every other release this year. It was the year of the Yeezy and Adidas has set themselves up for another year with inventory control and quick releases.
