2023-07-24 10:25:35
Sole Mates is a new column of Hypebeast about sneaker culture. In this series, we will ask the question “Why do you like sneakers?” to explore the deeper meaning beyond “Hype”. Sole Mates will unravel the origin story of each ‘Sneakerhead’ participant and let them tell why having a pair of sneakers is so important.
At the 15th anniversary auction of Poly Auction held in 2020, a set of rare Nike Kobe “Master’s Road” all-white Sample was auctioned by a mainland collector at a price of 800,000 yuan, setting the highest unit price for an official sneaker auction in China; and at the Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force 1 auction held specially to commemorate Virgil Abloh last year, this collector bid for a total price of more than $150,000 One pair, becoming the top 200 in the world and the first person in the mainland to own this pair of shoes… The protagonist of this issue of “Sole Mates” is Carter Wang, who is known as the “king of Chinese shoes”.
Chaos/Hypebeast
When we came to the collection room of King Carter’s home, we were able to see the “tip of the iceberg” in his huge collection. As a collector with 2000 to 3000 pairs of rare shoes, he is now using the power of social media to share his collection with more people, so as to help everyone understand the story behind the entire sneaker industry. In addition, he has a more ambitious ideal, which is to build a sneaker museum in his hometown to let all shoe fans know that there is a place in China called “Changzhou”.
Tracing back to the source, Vince Carter, known as the strongest dunk in NBA history, had a huge impact on King Carter. This time, he shared with us his Vince Carter series collection, and also shared how he started to like sneakers, and the story of participating in the LV x Nike AF1 auction that year.
Hypebeast: Let me give you a brief self-introduction first!
Carter Wang: Hello everyone, I am Carter King, a sneaker collector from Changzhou, Jiangsu Province. I have participated in the market development of many large-scale events such as the Olympic Games, Youth Olympic Games and other sports events. Now I also run a sports company. I am considered half of the sports circle.
Chaos/Hypebeast
How did you get to know and fall in love with sneaker culture? Remember what your first pair of sneakers were and how you got them?
In fact, I have been fond of sneakers for more than 20 years. At that time, I was still studying, liked to watch NBA, and liked to watch “Slam Dunk”. At that time, sneakers should not have formed the current “culture”. In 2002, I remember that the launch price was 1,680, and it was equipped with an iron box. I remember that I was lying on the bed and reluctant to take it off on the day I bought it.
Chaos/Hypebeast
When you were growing up, which players and sneakers left a deep impression on you?
In my impression, I am deeply impressed by every pair of boots worn by players in the NBA All-Star Game in 2004 and 2005, such as the Nike Air Zoom Huarache 2k4 worn by Nike stars such as Kobe Bryant, the Nike Shox VC3 of Vince Carter, the adidas T-Mac 3 of Tracy McGrady, the Nike LeBron 2 of LeBron James, and the Air of Jason Kidd. Jordan 19, and Ray Allen’s Air Jordan 20, etc., the sneaker design of that period is really classic.
Chaos/Hypebeast
When did you like Vince Carter and collect his sneakers? How has he influenced your life?
Like the vast majority of Carter fans, I watched him participate in the slam dunk contest and the Olympic Games “Death Buckle” in 2000. At that time, I thought it was too handsome, especially the Nike Shox sneakers with air columns on his feet. When Carter traveled to China in 2002, Sina Sports auctioned a pair of Carter’s first-generation low-top autographed versions. I later spent 5,000 yuan to take these shoes back. The road to sneaker collection.
Chaos/Hypebeast
Of all your Carter collections, which ones hold special meaning to you? Why?
Carter’s third-generation platinum color PE is my favorite pair of sneakers, especially with Carter’s autograph on it. This pair of shoes is not commercially available. They were originally intended to be worn when they won the Athens Olympic Games. As a result, Carter did not go to the Olympic Games, and the US team did not win the championship. Therefore, this pair of shoes only exists in the sample room stage.
Chaos/Hypebeast
When collecting these rare Carter sneakers, are there any interesting stories or experiences that you can share with you?
For example, the North Carolina color scheme of the third generation of Carter, I saw a friend post this picture on Weibo by chance ten years ago, and then in the next five years, I chatted with this friend in various ways, whether to sell or exchange, hoping that he would forward it to me. I have been joking that I have been persistently chasing a girl for five years. I think I can catch up with my ability. As a result, it was not until the first two years that I finally exchanged this pair of shoes with a rarer pair of shoes. Persistence finally paid off.
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Can you tell us about your participation in the Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force auction?
Originally, I wanted to collect all the colors of LV x AF1. The auction must not be left behind. The auction process was actually quite interesting. Sotheby’s pushed back the time by one day at the last moment of the bidding closing day. Later, I received an email from Sotheby’s asking me to pick up the shoes. I immediately asked my younger brother in the United States to take an early flight to New York. He was the first to pick up the shoes when the door opened at 1:00 pm. At that time, there was also a live broadcast. He was the first customer in the world to get the shoes. It was quite interesting, and it became a hot topic at the time.
Chaos/Hypebeast
You always seem to be able to receive a lot of rare shoes before the official release, such as Tiffany x Nike Air Force 1, what is the story behind this?
In fact, I knew about this shoe last year, but no one has exposed it, and then it should be during the Chinese New Year, and the logistics were delayed. Later, LeBron put on the black pair first, and then I immediately sent this pair of reverse green Tiffany x AF1 relatives and friends limited edition. Later, I told Nike friends that Alexandre Arnault, the son of LVMH, was not happy, saying that he had never seen the green pair. Why did the Chinese have it again? Two months later, when the official release was approaching, Carmelo Anthony took a video to expose the green pair. He thought he was the first person to own it (laughs).
“There are too few people who can popularize the stories I share with you now. As a sneaker blogger, I can try my best to tell you things that the brand can’t usually tell, and share shoes that you can’t usually see.”
Since when did you want to be a “sneaker blogger”? In addition to sharing the rarest sneakers, what do you think the mission of “sneaker bloggers” is?
In fact, when Hupu, especially Dewu, came out, I started sharing sneakers all day long, including a small exhibition hall I built before Changzhou. Not many people knew about it, only people in the sneaker circle knew about it, and I didn’t manage social platforms like Douyin well. It wasn’t until Guangzhou SneakerCon in 2019 that Miss Nine came to take pictures of me that I slowly entered everyone’s field of vision. There are too few people who can popularize the stories I share with you now. As a sneaker blogger, I can try my best to tell you things that brands can’t usually tell, share shoes that you don’t usually see, and let everyone understand the culture and stories behind the entire sneaker industry.
Chaos/Hypebeast
You said before that you want to build a “sneaker museum” in Changzhou. What is the scale of your idea? Why do you want to do this?
I had a stadium before, and I set up a small shop next to the stadium for everyone to check in. Unfortunately, I encountered problems with the epidemic and the shop itself, so it was closed. Then there are also many commercial entities who have been looking for me and want me to open another one. This matter has been advancing, but because Changzhou is really a small city, the traffic and resources cannot reach the level of a big city. But it is precisely because of this that I want to realize this thing here, in order to better let everyone know that there is a place in China called Changzhou.
Chaos/Hypebeast
Many shoe fans feel that the current sneakers are much worse in terms of “story” and “rarity” than before. What do you think of this point of view?
Still the same sentence, Nike has not made efforts in recent years and everyone is really tired of traditional shoe models. I have always said that Nike is not a sports company, but a company that can tell the best stories, but there are so many stories to tell in the past few years. The same NBA has not launched a superstar who can take over the torch in the past few years. Various factors have led to fewer and fewer “stories”. Coupled with the economic downturn, we can only continue to increase the production of products, and the rarity is naturally very low.
Carter King’s 5 “Best Sneakers”
01/The most worn pair of shoes every day
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I usually wear the Air Jordan 1 the most. The barbs of various colors are also better to match, especially the low top, because I never untie the shoelaces, and I always slip on. This pair of Sample versions is what I am going to start wearing in the near future.
02/The most tortuous pair of shoes in the starting process
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As mentioned above, the pair of Carter’s North Carolina three is the longest. If the process is tortuous, I think I think it’s the Air Jordan’s North Carolina suit. Each pair is collected separately, unlike other suits that can be collected all at once.
03/ Buy the most expensive pair of shoes
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The highest price must be the LV x AF1 obtained at auction, seven figures. But what I want to share here is another set of Nike Kobe series all-white suit that I got through auction. It was actually bought at Poly 15th Anniversary Auction, and it should be the highest unit price of China’s official sneaker auction.
04/The earliest pair of shoes in all collections
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The earliest shoes that are still there are those Ray Allen PEs in the late 1990s. Most of the earlier ones were disposed of because of poor preservation.
05/The latest pair of shoes
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I recently bought the Crenshaw Skate Club x Air Jordan 36 Low “Tobey” PE. These shoes are limited to relatives and friends who are not on sale. My pair is Bam Adebayo GU in size 49.5.
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