An auction of rare shoes fetched a record breaking amount of $437,500 for a pair of rare Nike trainers that was designed by the co-founder of the sportswear giant.
The auction that took place in New York had on offer a total of 100 pairs of trainers of companies ranging from Adidas to Air Jordans and the Nike shoes that went for the record amount was last pair on offer.
The auctioneers had been expecting ot get a maximum of about $160,000 for the Nike Waffle Racing Flat Moon Shoe hat was designed and manufactured in 1972. But the auction saw the bid increasing and finally the shoe went to Canadian collector, Miles Nadal which shelled out almost three time of the expected money. The total amount gathered for the rest of the 99 pair of shoes at the auction was $850,000 and was bought by Nadal.
Bill Bowerman, a track coach who co-founded Nike, was designer of the Nike Waffle Moon Shoes. The uniqueness of the shoe was that the company had made only 12 pairs of it – which were hand-made, with a number being handed out to runners at the 1972 Olympic trials. The pair that was auctioned is believed is the only one that was used by the runners.
Bowerman used a waffle iron to imprint the tread on the shoes, said Noah Wunsch, Sotheby's global head of e-commerce.
Calling the Moon Shoe a "true historical artefact in sports history and pop culture", the current owner of the shoes Nadal - who founded an investment firm, Peerage Capital - said he was thrilled at his purchase.
"I think sneaker culture and collecting is on the verge of a breakout moment," he added. He said that he would be displaying the Nike shoe along with the rest of the shoes that he had bought from the New York auction in his private automobile museum in Toronto.
Among the other important buys at the auction that Nadal made included a couple of pairs of Nike Mags shoes – which became famous all around the world because it was used in the 1989 blockbuster film Back to the Future Part II. It had a unique feature – an automatic lacing system which was a technology the Nike did not launch in the market till about 30 years later. The auctioneers were expecting bids of between $50,000 and $70,000 for the limited edition Back to the Future 2016 sneakers.
Jeter edition Air Jordan 11 was another start attraction of the auction. The pair was made in 2017 to mark the retirement of the New York Yankee baseball star Derek Jeter. The auctioneer estimated that he pair would fetch close to $60,000.
The highest price fetched at a public auction for trainers is thought to be $190,373 for a pair of signed Converse shoes worn by Michael Jordan in the 1984 Olympic basketball final. The shoes were auctioned in California in 2017.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
The auction that took place in New York had on offer a total of 100 pairs of trainers of companies ranging from Adidas to Air Jordans and the Nike shoes that went for the record amount was last pair on offer.
The auctioneers had been expecting ot get a maximum of about $160,000 for the Nike Waffle Racing Flat Moon Shoe hat was designed and manufactured in 1972. But the auction saw the bid increasing and finally the shoe went to Canadian collector, Miles Nadal which shelled out almost three time of the expected money. The total amount gathered for the rest of the 99 pair of shoes at the auction was $850,000 and was bought by Nadal.
Bill Bowerman, a track coach who co-founded Nike, was designer of the Nike Waffle Moon Shoes. The uniqueness of the shoe was that the company had made only 12 pairs of it – which were hand-made, with a number being handed out to runners at the 1972 Olympic trials. The pair that was auctioned is believed is the only one that was used by the runners.
Bowerman used a waffle iron to imprint the tread on the shoes, said Noah Wunsch, Sotheby's global head of e-commerce.
Calling the Moon Shoe a "true historical artefact in sports history and pop culture", the current owner of the shoes Nadal - who founded an investment firm, Peerage Capital - said he was thrilled at his purchase.
"I think sneaker culture and collecting is on the verge of a breakout moment," he added. He said that he would be displaying the Nike shoe along with the rest of the shoes that he had bought from the New York auction in his private automobile museum in Toronto.
Among the other important buys at the auction that Nadal made included a couple of pairs of Nike Mags shoes – which became famous all around the world because it was used in the 1989 blockbuster film Back to the Future Part II. It had a unique feature – an automatic lacing system which was a technology the Nike did not launch in the market till about 30 years later. The auctioneers were expecting bids of between $50,000 and $70,000 for the limited edition Back to the Future 2016 sneakers.
Jeter edition Air Jordan 11 was another start attraction of the auction. The pair was made in 2017 to mark the retirement of the New York Yankee baseball star Derek Jeter. The auctioneer estimated that he pair would fetch close to $60,000.
The highest price fetched at a public auction for trainers is thought to be $190,373 for a pair of signed Converse shoes worn by Michael Jordan in the 1984 Olympic basketball final. The shoes were auctioned in California in 2017.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
