I think for a lot of people they don't see it as flexing or pretending to be what they're not. they just really like the design of something but cant afford or cant justify paying the price for the real thing.

and I'm with them. this s*** is overpriced. I love Union 1s and can afford union 1s but I could justify paying 1k+ for a pair of Nikes with the exception of Yeezy 2s and that's because it's sentimental.

the sad reality is that even if you're buying it just because you like it it gives people the impression that you're stunting and I could never justify that either.

So here I am without Unions

save up and buy og, will make it much more valuable for you

This too

Broke boys don’t realize it’s like investing in an art piece where its value only appreciates over time, if you ever decide to sell it

this is easy to say if the hypothetical piece is like 300 not 5k

That fufu lame s*** i aint wit it 😤

Pride would get in my way

I'm not giving somebody $300 for a sweaty 2016 Palace t-shirt that was $48 retail because they feel like their stains make it a vintage rare piece in "near dswt" condition

Otherwise, I don't really see the point in buying reps

resale market has been gentrified in permanence and as time goes by people can't even purchase what they really sought for an x amount of time or just never.

keep in mind w/ the majority of rep factories most of these people actually work with these aforementioned brands and obtain the literal blueprints to the piece, shoe, or item you want and in some cases make the item superior to the OG even w/ certain fabrics etc.

it's foolish to justify dropping a band for a shoe you could easily get from someone else for retail/near retail in fear of all bc someone might come out of nowhere and try to clown you for it nobody's even looking anymore nor paying attention if you have the opportunity to get the real thing for a good price do it but don't go out of your means listening to these other people in here if you don't want to pay resale ra*e.

Tbh you'd be surprised at the amount of people unknowingly rocking fakes. Half of the niggas out here go to the same "sneaker plug" and i know for a fact he selling reps, he told me he gets his s*** sold on goat and a few consignment shops too, not to mention local sales.

bootlicking sheep itt

s*** is made in the same factories

I wonder if thats actually true, I get that from broke gang a lot.

'its all the same, even tho one falls apart in 3 months and the other won't get a scratch in 2 years of wear'

capitalism got you stupid f***s paying $500 for some s*** that cost $5 to make

i own both fakes and retail n lemme tell you, its the exact same s*** only difference is how much you're paying.

If not the same factories then the ones nextdoor. From what I gathered in the replica sneaker subreddit years ago, its not as if brands outright OWN these factories, they hire them to make their product. The culture in shenzhen gets dodgy and they sell each other the blueprints/patterns, probably sometimes specialised machines etc. so sometimes its 100% the same, sometimes its only halfway there, depends. Truth is that everything made in those factories arent even good quality in the first place. Unless the brand can be f***ed caring about the effort that goes into quality control and assurance, which depends on the brand. Adidas and Nike, as examples, do not.

then its about realistic standards. at some point in life (early-mid 30s maybe) I really want to own a Rollie, but if I get to wear it with my qlo or Carhartt s*** it will look f***ing stupid as hell. I have to redo my entire wardrobe to rock one confidently and for it to look in place, and thats a lot of work and evolution to happen beforehand

doesn't mean I don't want em, but no way am I saving for something obviously out of my league immediately right now

Half the s*** you're rocking from Stockx is a taobao rep

The line between real and reps is so blurred these days lol.
Both the "real" and "fake" shoe are being made in the same factory 99% of the time.

If its just casual wear sure fakes are alright.
But if you flex them like a moron then nah.

tho Morons itt bootlicking companies im OUT

once you get to that age I hope you will see through the materialist bullshit

oh ya that too, im down with both outcomes

thats the way to go lol

The reddit kids have infiltrated the thread

I said this in the last thread but why arent people just willing to find a alternative to what they’re trying to get lol. If you have any sense of fashion you know 2 things, 1. There is always an alternative to the piece you’re trying to get, or at least something in the same vein. Where do you think a lot of these brands get their inspiration from? S*** doesnt just come from thin air
2. If the only thing you care about is the brand name, or the hype surrounding a piece, you’re into clothes for all the wrong reasons. It ties back to a lot of self esteem s*** too. People should work on that first and foremost before buying into trends and getting FOMO from the hypebeast community