Until very recently, flipping sneakers was never seen as a legitimate way to make money. The term “flipping sneakers” wasn’t all that popular either. The term basically represents buying sneakers – rare or special edition ones – at retail price and then reselling it for a healthy margin. Today, flipping sneakers is something that a lot of sneakerheads do on a professional level.
As more people turn to sneakers as a way to score a healthy profit, it is only natural that the market becomes more and more competitive. Recent launches of special edition sneakers are more exciting than you think. Resellers now use advanced technology to score the best pairs and bank the highest profit. Even platforms like Goat, a site that specializes in sneakers resale, are becoming hot properties.
Is this a money making opportunity that you can also benefit from? The answer to this question is a big YES. Before you get started, however, there are a few things you need to know about making money reselling sneakers and becoming competitive in the long run.
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Proxy First
Before we go into the best pairs to target and how to score healthy profits, we need to cover the tech behind hunting and reselling sneakers first. Why? Because, as mentioned before, the best players are no longer buying sneakers manually. They use bots and other tech to make sure they land the best pairs as soon as they are launched.
Bots are faster than any professional sneakerhead and they are incredibly useful for buying or bidding on sneakers. You can get your own bot up and running in a matter of minutes with a few simple preparations.
For starters, you need a proxy server to prevent your bot from being blocked by retail websites. The best proxy provider can help mask the IP address of your bot automatically. It also allows you to get the best price, since you will be seen as a fresh new user. A lot of discounts are available for first-time customers as well.
Click here to see what a reliable proxy provider can offer. It is very popular among sneakerheads who want their tech setup – particularly the proxy side of the equation – to be as simple as possible. Once you have a reliable proxy service, you can get your sneaker bot up and running behind the proxy server.
Using Bots to Get the Best Prices
Sneaker bots are very simple to use. Once the bot is running, you only need to enter the purchase URL, your payment information, and delivery details. The bot will take care of the rest of the purchase for you. With new releases having countdowns before they are made available, using bots is a great way to gain a competitive advantage.
There are two types of sneaker bots to use. The first one runs directly on your computer. You need to keep your computer on and connected to the internet for the bot to work. Another type is one that runs in the cloud. Since it is not device-dependent, you have a better chance of landing the pair that you want with your sneaker bot running in the cloud.
Bots running in the cloud can complete a purchase in as little as 0.2 seconds. If you do a manual checkout, on the other hand, you may need more than a whole minute to make the purchase. The competitive advantage is clear. Another note is the legality of sneaker bots; they are legal as long as you are not performing activities that go against the terms and conditions of retail websites.
A popular bot to look into is AIO Bot. This is a bot that was designed from the ground up to give a competitive advantage to any sneakerhead who has a pair that they want. It has a clear task setup wizard and even support for more than 200 sneaker websites. Raffle Bot is another option to look into, but the features are limited to sneakers sold in raffles.
The Money Making Part
The business of reselling sneakers is a lucrative one to get into. In a recent article, GQ reported a sneakers market valuation of $2 billion. With brands like Adidas and Yeezy releasing limited edition pairs, the appeal is certainly there.
Platforms that let you resell sneakers are also getting a lot of attention. Goat is still the leading platform for resellers. Even Foot Locker invested in Goat, realizing the potential of the business with a $100 million investment into the platform.
Another popular platform is StockX. The platform isn’t specializing in sneakers, but there is a big volume of limited-edition sneakers that you can buy. It is also a great place to survey the potential margins you can get from reselling sneakers.
On top of that, we have websites for sneakerheads. Reddit has a section on sneakers where users can buy and sell sneakers as well as exchange stories about their most exciting hunts. Similar communities can be found on messaging apps like Telegram.
Another interesting part of the industry is how professionals are enlisting the help of others, especially when it comes to conquering offline sales of new pairs and managing their sneakers portfolio. Yes, there is such a thing as sneakers portfolios.
Sneakers are quickly becoming investments. A pair of Yeezy can be sold multiple times and generate profit each time. Some of the rarest pairs can be sold at up to 15 times the retail price to the right buyer. Platforms like Goat facilitate that kind of exchange.
How much money can you make reselling sneakers? The best resellers on Goat can bank $2 million in profit per year. Smaller resellers can easily secure 5 or 6-digit payouts annually. The potential is there; it is up to you to capitalize on this opportunity.
If you love sneakers and you want to turn your hobby and knowledge into profit, then reselling sneakers is a business worth exploring. You can use bots and proxies to be competitive from the beginning. Reseller platforms and communities will take care of the rest.
About Carson Derrow
