The sneaker industry is worth nearly $72.2 billion and is expected to reach $100 billion by 2026.
Key Details
- The sneaker industry as a whole was worth $45 billion in 2014 and is now worth $72.2 billion despite supply chain issues and inflation, according to data from Statista.
- The sneaker resale market in the U.S. is estimated to be around $2 billion and is expected to increase to $30 billion by 2030.
- Most well-liked shoes have a typical retail price of $120 to $300 and will sell on popular resale apps such as StockX, GOAT, and FlightClub for hundreds over the original price.
- The sneaker industry is expected to be worth around $101 billion by 2026, marking a huge jump from its current market value.
Why it’s news
Although many people might not be aware of it, a rapidly growing market for younger generations is the sneaker industry.
Over the last few years, the sneaker market has been red hot, with companies selling out of shoes minutes after releasing and shoe resell stores popping up in cities nationwide.
One of the leaders in the industry, Nike, has a shoe app called SNKRS for dedicated fans, where the brand will drop coveted shoes multiple times per week. The shoes on the app are so popular that Nike hosts “draws.”
When a shoe drops, the draw opens, allowing users to sign up for their size, and different users are randomly picked. If your account is chosen for the draw, the credit card on file is immediately charged, and the shoes are shipped in the following days.
After shoe drops, a large majority of buyers resell the shoes on resale sites for hundreds over what they paid for the shoe from the retailer. For example, a popular shoe is the Nike black and white “Panda” Dunk, which retails for $110 and resales anywhere from $150 to $350, depending on size.
The industry began to taper off in February of this year, with resale prices falling dramatically due to inflation. Although prices were falling, the prices of the shoes were still much higher than retail prices, leaving sellers with a profit—just not as much as in years past.
Although the market began falling, it is rising yet again, with projections of the sneaker industry reaching around $100 billion by 2026, up $28.8 billion from the current valuation of $72.2 billion, according to Statista.
The used shoe market is another aspect of the sneaker industry that is expected to grow. The second-hand footwear market is projected to witness a compound annual growth rate of approximately 12.5% over the forecast period of 2022-2032, according to Persistent Market Research.
While many buyers prefer buying new shoes, there is also a large market for used sneakers. For extreme sneaker fans, many highly coveted shoes have only been released once, meaning they are older and in limited supply.
That makes the shoes very valuable, and many buyers are willing to pay top dollar for them regardless if they have been worn.
On the other hand, some buyers enjoy shoes but do not have hundreds to spend on brand-new sneakers opting to purchase their favorites used.
Sneakers are only classified as brand new if they have never been worn. Even if a shoe has been worn once, shows no signs of wear, and looks brand new, it is still considered worn, which depletes the value.
A shoe can go down hundreds of dollars just by being worn once, allowing someone to get a $500 pair of sneakers for $200 to $300.