Nike SB

Nike SB

In 2002, after failing four times to enter the skateboard market, Nike SB emerged as a successful skateboarding company by manipulating demand for the shoes by keeping numbers down and signing many well-known skateboarders. By keeping numbers down, skateboard shop owners could sell the shoes for as much as five times the suggested $65 retail price. Critics contend that Nike still has not penetrated the skateboarding market and would point out that most of the demand for Nike SB shoes has come from shoe fetishists self-described as Sneakerheads. Nike executive Sandy Bodecker admitted that 80 percent of the shoes were initially bought by this demographic. Due to the high prices caused by the artificial scarcity of the shoes, it is highly unlikely that a person would actually use the shoes for skateboarding, as such an activity would tear the shoes up rather quickly diminishing their collectible value.