Last week, Complex released its four-part docuseries Sold Out: The Underground Economy of Supreme Resellers. The episodes, launched one a day, focused on the history of Supreme, introduced you to some of the biggest resellers in New York City, and explained the obstacles and successes of the individuals who flip Supreme product for big profits.
But we noticed that some of you had questions about the documentary and/or the people involved. Well, we've heard you loud and clear, and asked three of the resellers we interviewed and our very own Emily Oberg and Davy Gomez—the directors of Sold Out—to answer those burning questions. We didn't shy away from the tough ones, either.
If you can't get to L.A. or NY, you have to go through resellers? What about the online store? — submitted by Yung Meezy
"There is an online store but if you're in competition with a couple hundred people on the line for the in-store, the online release is you against the whole world. Things sell out really fast. Add to that the advent of 'bots,' and popular items are literally sold out in milliseconds." — Andre, @solestreetsneakerco
Can anyone explain to me what is a bot for the reselling business? — submitted by donkey11
"A 'bot' is basically an extension you can install on your browser that auto processes your order on the website it's set to. It's an advanced auto-fill: you select an item and it fills in all the information and basically checks you out in under five seconds. It's frowned upon, but accepted when you can't get to a store and have to compete with everyone else online." — Racks
"A bot basically continues to refresh the page automatically every three seconds, while it also runs an extension that is constantly searching key words (a box logo is coming out, it will search " box," "logo," "T-shirt," "black," "hoodie," etc.) I never have used a bot before and will never. It's corny and for the birds." — @sole_possession_
That's a hard lifestyle, man. Is it really worth it? — submitted by Ling Lang
"NO! I would much rather be working at Complex, conducting and orchestrating these types of things, or doing some sort of consultant work but my avenues are a bit limited. Reselling is hard. Many days have been wasted just sitting in front of a store hoping they will release an item or let go leftovers. But the allure of a good flip is a hard thing to pass." — Andre, @solestreetsneakerco
"To me, yes, it's actually not that hard when you look at the bigger picture. Like any profession, it takes dedication to get the desired results. So to me, to camp from Wednesday to Thursday, spend $1,000 with the potential to triple my money, it's definitely worth it. And depending on the type of person you are, you can make allies that will help you and work together to both make money. Me personally, I don't, like, set schedules—I don't like being trapped at a place that can fire me. With this I'm my own boss. I set the schedule, I decide what drops I want to do, and I decide how much I can make. The trade off for that type of occupational freedom is priceless. So I think from my point of view it's completely justified." — Racks
"Ling Lang!!! Whatsup, girl!!! It's worth it, yeah. It's a hobby of mine and also something I enjoy doing for a living. Why wake up every day, miserable to go to work? Instead, wake up doing something you like or love, right? I enjoy sneakers, fashion, and the lifestyle." — @sole_possession_
How do you start reselling? I'm thinking if I camp during winter break and sell a few pieces, then I can afford to get a few pieces of Supreme. Muthafuckas got sneaky and dropped the box logo crew neck last Thursday for $138 and I ain't even got $1.38. — submitted by Kool Aid
"You really should start with getting familiar with the product and watching the trends in the market. Use eBay as your first resource, look at release dates and check sold items. Try and track trends in the prices things are sold by, and begin by getting items as similar as possible. Once you start diving in, you'll know what's dropping beforehand—except for a few surprises here and there. FYI: Supreme is closed for winter break. Stay in school and design this shit instead, though. Then help me out with some back door action!" — Andre, @solestreetsneakerco
"So I get asked this all the time and it's honestly quite simple, my thug. Here's a route that you can take and it might not cost you anything up front if you already have some stuff. Basically, you should start small and work your way up: if you have pieces in decent condition sell them to get your capital up, wait for a hyped release, dig in, and make sure you get whatever is dropping. Save the money off what you sell and repeat, buying more items to sell each time there's a drop...boom—before you know it, you've got 10 people in the line and you're making some decent coin yourself. Just be patient and enjoy the hustle. The money/clients/network will come with time." — Racks
Why do some of these guy act like reselling and selling crack are the only ways to get money, lol? — submitted by josh s
"There are certainly other avenues, but not always great ones. Without formal education or a hook up or some sort, getting a job that can match the amount you can make is hard. Most of the guys reselling don't have Oriental rugs and grand pianos, let alone the capital and credit required to open a shop—especially in NYC. There's a million people within a mile of every direction and every one needs a job and money." — Andre, @solestreetsneakerco
"Well, in the world we live in today, there are many options we are given to be productive members of society. But I'm gonna be blunt and just say most of them suck and are boring. To live like most of us feel like we should—aside from being a athlete, actor, etc.—the only way you'd ever see that kind of money—and fast—is drug dealing. Why? Majority of the people that are resellers come from backgrounds influenced by drugs, so those are the standards they relate to what they're doing. I'm from a middle-class upbringing but I used to deal drugs the same way I deal this Supreme stuff to my clients. Same way a butcher would relate it to running a meat market. And I'm pretty sure if a farmer jumped into the resell game, he'd compare it to tending his livestock to make a profit. In short, they're not the only options that I know personally. I've worked many jobs, none of them as fun and rewarding as my current profession, but there are a lot of people that don't know of any other options...BUT CRACK DEALING, that's why." — Racks
"It's enjoyable to sell clothes, sneakers, etc. It's an easy thing. Been doing it for years and enjoy every second. It's my hobby (sneakers) and I started young. That eventually pulled me into Supreme (I started collecting in 2006). The game changed so I had to adapt to my environment and start reselling." — @sole_possession_
Lmao, $600 for a Kermit? Where did you get these numbers? — submited by Joe B
"I've seen a lot of people criticizing us for the prices but that's what they were on eBay/Instagram when we were doing research and putting the doc together. Prices change weekly, so of course you might not find that exact price if you look today. It took eight months to make this doc, so you can imagine that prices may have changed since then." — Emily Oberg
"We used eBay, as well as one of the resellers. Since these are their pieces (and retail prices aren't posted online), we had one of the resellers (someone who chose to remain anonymous) go item by item and tell us what the resale and retail prices were. I think it's funny that someone would see that price and think, 'Oh, wow—I got that much cheaper!' Like Andre of SoleStreet said, some people want to pay top dollar to buy from a particular reseller. Red Octobers aren't worth $20K but someone paid that." — Davy Gomez
Did Complex make this to lowkey expose the resellers and shit? — submitted by x5iveL1v3sx
"As I said in the Buzzfeed interview, we made this doc to shed light on reselling and give the resellers a chance to tell their side of the story. We wanted to expose the business of reselling because there are a lot of people outside of the streetwear/sneaker world who aren't familiar with it at all." — Emily Oberg
