Why New Sneakerheads Are the Best

Image via Complex Original

It's not just about volume, although having a sneaker collection that numbers in the dozens rather than the hundreds (or thousands) is a strangely comforting thought. At that level, early on, every pickup is a huge deal, and every addition to the stacks (or stack) is a milestone. Plus, they're all easily accessible for (gasp!) wearing purposes.

Sure, kids just into kicks may act like they invented sneakers or something. But that's to be expected. And accepted. Because along with being extremely opinionated and extremely arrogant (sometimes), they're extremely passionate. Nothing beats new love.

Wearing a pair of basketball sneakers to play basketball? Blasphemy! But even those Atlantic Blue Penny IIs were designed with the basketball court in mind. Hoop in basketball shoes, run in runners, skate in SBs. Imagine that.

Just because a style (or a brand) has been revived 10 times before doesn't mean everyone is sick of it. New sneakerheads are seeing -- and buying -- everything for the first time, which means they see it differently. Listen to them.

New brands? New styles? There's a reason a lot of fashion is driven by the street style of kids. Designers look to them for inspiration, and older cats try (sometimes with disastrous results) to dress like their younger counterparts. Heck, even Kevin Durant is still under 25.

The new sneakerheads didn't monetize sneaker collecting, but they're doing their best to drive that side of things. And why not? If the sneaker companies are trying to take as much money as they can from the wallets of sneakerheads, can you blame the sneakerheads trying to refill their accounts the same way?

It's really hard to stay hyped for every release these days, what with a new one coming damn near every day. If you've been doing this for years, the grind is just that. But for those just getting into sneakers, it's all new. Lining up, camping out, these aren't inconveniences, they're exciting.

Damn kids! Most new sneaker collectors have never known a world without the internet, and as such are old hands at exploiting it. Mad you didn't even get a chance at copping that latest NDC release? Blame a newbie. And at least respect the hustle.

Those "bings" coming from that kid's smartphone aren't e-mails or Instagram likes or even texts -- they're iCal alerts for every new release on every site. While most of us make note of release dates months early then totally forget them until the day after, the new kids are on it from the jump.

This isn't to say that kids don't complain, because they certainly do. And there's nothing better than hearing a 15-year-old who's been into sneakers for all of six months bitching about how a retro doesn't measure up to an original model that came out 15 year before they were born and that they've never seen in person. That said, new sneakerheads aren't born jaded, they're made. In the beginning, passion trumps all. Let's try and help them keep that feeling.