Kanye West’s Yeezy prototype have officially set a new sneaker sale record after being sold privately at auction house, Sotheby’s.
The auction house acquired the shoe earlier this month and it was estimated the Nike-made trainers would sell for around $1 million but it has been revealed they beat expectations by quite a bit as they were sold to sneaker investing platform, Rares, for a whopping $1.8 million!
“We are thrilled to work with Sotheby’s on this acquisition,” says Gerome Sapp, CEO and Co-Founder of RARES. “Our goal in purchasing such an iconic shoe—and a piece of history—is to increase accessibility and empower the communities that birthed sneaker culture with the tools to gain financial freedom through Rares.
“We look forward to working with Sotheby’s to continue to identify rare finds that will help elevate, preserve and uphold sneaker culture.”
The Nike Air Yeezy prototype were first worn by Kanye West in February 2008 during his performance at the 50th Grammy Awards. The rapper went on to release a string of Air Yeezys with Nike before he landed a deal with Adidas in 2013 and birthed his popular Yeezy line.
The Air Yeezy prototype is now officially the most expensive shoe to be sold at the Sotheby’s, beating the Air Jordan 1 High “Chicago” that was sold for $560,000 last year.