Kanye West’s Grammy-worn Nike Air Yeezy 1 prototypes from 2008 have been sold for a staggering $1.8 million, making them the most valuable sneakers ever and the first recorded sneaker sale for more than $1 million, said Sotheby’s(one of the world’s largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewelry, real estate, and collectibles) on Monday 26th April.
The price sets a new milestone for a publicly recorded sneaker sale, shattering the previous auction record for sneakers by nearly three times. Sotheby’s says the shoes were acquired by sneaker investing platform RARES via private sale.
RARES, a first-of-its-kind fractional ownership and sneaker investigating marketplace, allows users to invest in sneakers by buying and trading shares in them.
Kanye wore the now record-breaking Yeezys during his performance of “Hey Mama” and “Stronger” at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards although the style never officially hit shop shelves.
According to Sotheby’s the pair is one of the most prized and sought-after sneakers in existence, they were created exclusively for West and redefined what a signature shoe could be.
Previously, Sotheby’s record auction price for sneakers was $560,000 for a pair of Nike Air Jordan 1s in May 2020. It also sold a pair of Nike Waffle Shoes in 2019 for $437,000, which was a record price at that time.
