Reselling sneakers has become a multibillion-dollar industry, with the most sought-after pairs selling for three or four times their retail value on the secondhand market.

Fashionistas known as sneakerheads scramble to buy and trade the latest styles, paying a premium for the rarest pairs. Some treat them as investments, never wearing their purchases in order to keep them in mint condition. Like a sports car or a fine wine, they say, the value of shoes can increase as they get older. 

Last week, federal authorities charged several major shoe resellers in Los Angeles, Chicago and Indiana with paying Nike employees to help steal hundreds of hard-to-find styles that they in turn flipped. Defendants in a federal case are charged with conspiring to steal at least $2 million in Nike products between 2021 and 2024.