Bad news for anyone hoping to snag Virgil Abloh‘s Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force 1 collab on the cheap: the sought-after sneakers are already scoring five-figure results via Sotheby’s auction.
It’s not particularly surprising, as the LV x Nike AF1 series broke the sneaker world apart when it was revealed in Summer 2021.
Of course, these special sneakers represent more than a mere collaborative effort. The LV x Nike AF1’s appeal stems from a plurality of factors: it’s Abloh’s final commercial collaborative of comparable scale; the shoes are sneaker luxury at its peak, referencing decades of dreamed-up mash-ups; and, obviously, it brings together two cultural titans in one accessible package.
It made sense that Louis Vuitton would tap Sotheby’s to auction off the collaborative Nike sneakers — there’s really no other fair way to drop these kicks, presumably destined to become the biggest of the year.
“Fair” is used relatively here because there’s no way that a $1,000+ sale price for any sneaker is reasonable for the average folk.
These are the pinnacle of rarefied kicks, admittedly, even for Louis Vuitton. But it’s still surprising to see how rabid the bidding’s been so far and we’ve got nearly two weeks ’til the end.
When the sale opened on January 26, entry bids for the 200 pairs of shoes began at $2,000 apiece — already inaccessible for most but only a couple hundred bucks more than Abloh’s own LV Trainer.
A day later, however, the Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force 1 bids had leapt up past $20k; some were peaking at $30k.
One pair in the ultra-desirable size US 11 put the rest to shame with a whopping $65k bid.
Realized with a mixed monogrammed Damier leather upper and the requisite co-branding, these shoes are perhaps the best representation of the LV x Nike team-up so perhaps the price makes a bit more sense in context (hardly).
Plus, all of these shoes come with their own custom LV x Nike trunk — ordinary LV trunks of comparable size can go for upwards of $10k.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CY7W_2jIf97/
$65k is pretty up there, though, and expect bids to go even higher by the time the auction ends on February 8.
Abloh’s Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force 1s are reportedly set for general release later this year.
They won’t retail for five figures (probably), they won’t come with the orange cases present in this auction and they’ll presumably only be available to top LV clients and the in-the-know à la Dior x Jordan.
If it softens the eye-watering price at all, remember that proceeds from Sotheby’s sale of the LV x Nike AF1 sneakers will benefit Abloh’s Fashion Scholarship Fund for Black students charity.
