As an avid sneaker collector, it was important for me to learn the difference between selling and paying resale when I discovered trading with Tradeblock.
I just traded a used pair of Jordan 1 Shadow 2.0’s, a used pair of Yeezy 700 V2 “Salts” and a deadstock pair of blue Vans x Notre for a pair of VNDS Black Levi’s Jordan 4’s. Let’s walk through on why I made the right decision trading these sneakers on the block vs selling them and copping the pair of VNDS Black Levi’s Jordan 4’s resale.
Let’s talk about the pair of VNDS Black Levi’s Jordan 4’s that I traded for. Being highlighted in red & VNDS, or very near deadstock, meant the other party was looking for a decent haul back in exchange for them.
The Difference Between Paying Resale and Trading
Above are the perceived value of the kicks on different resale platforms. Obviously you can only buy new on StockX but with GOAT & eBay I was able to find a pair of kicks around what I was getting in value with similar condition on them. Very close to the value of my kicks right? Watch what happens when you click buy now.
The dreaded fees. We have them too. But look at how much those shoes are out of pocket. I
don’t have $500-$630 to just blow on a pair of kicks. But I want them. Let me introduce you to
using your kicks as currency.
Remember that trade I pulled off? Let’s talk about the condition of my kicks. Obviously the pair
of 1’s and 700’s were used, but how used? The Yeezy’s were lowkey my dog walking shoes
since 2019 and couldn’t be valued more than $100. The Jordan 1 Shadow 2.0’s were in decent
condition but I wouldn’t have put a value of more than $220 on them. With the Vans X Notre
collaboration hovering around $100, I had roughly $420 in trade value.
Full disclosure: The 1’s and Vans were retail W’s with the Yeezy’s being bought used on GOAT
for $140 so my overall investment in the shoes was $410.
Knowing how much I had in trade, I scanned Tradeblock for people who had the Black Levi’s Air
Jordan 4. I was mainly looking for someone who had a pair in a decent used condition.
Once I found the few that did, I looked at everyone’s wishlist, mainly looking for users that had
used Shadow 2.0’s and the Vans & Notre collaboration on their wishlist. From there I’d add what
I could to get them over the edge. To my surprise, I found a user that had the kicks in the
condition I was looking for but they were also interested in my Yeezy’s & Shadow’s but didn’t
have the Vans on the wishlist.
From there it only took a few messages. I had sent an offer with a pair of New Balance 57/40
Joshua Vides to get the conversation started and he messaged me back almost immediately
asking to subtract the New Balance and add in the Vans and it would be a deal.
The Takeaway
Instead of me paying $450+ fees or $580+ fees on the resale platforms, I used my kicks as
currency and flipped a few pairs that were on their way out of my rotation in exchange for a mini
grail of mine and in the end, was out just $60 in fees.
This story isn't just a one-off though. Tens of thousands of sneakerheads are learning about how they can use Tradeblock to do exactly what I did to grab their grails without breaking the bank.
So what are you waiting for? Install the free Tradeblock app and secure your grails like me while they're still available.
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