Latest news with #Sotheby's
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Top 10 most expensive sneakers ever sold: These Michael Jordan's game-worn kicks cost more than a Bugatti
10 most expensive sneakers in the world: What began as a subculture rooted in basketball courts, hip-hop videos, and skate parks has exploded into one of the most influential and lucrative corners of the fashion world. In today's world, sneakers are status symbols, considered investments, and sometimes, even museum-worthy art pieces. Gone are the days when sneakers were just about comfort or athletic performance. Now, sneakerheads are lining up for days, entering raffles, and shelling out thousands to even lakhs of rupees for that one elusive pair. Collaborations with celebrities, designers, and artists – from Kanye West to Travis Scott – have only added rocket fuel to this phenomenon, turning rare sneakers into objects of desire that rival luxury watches and designer handbags. In July 2019, the game changed forever for sneakerheads and collectors. That was when Sotheby's made headlines with its first-ever sneaker auction, selling a pair of ultra-rare 1972 Nike 'Moon Shoes' for a staggering $437,000, nearly three times the estimated $150,000 price tag. Just ten months later, in May 2020, the same auction house topped its own record by selling a signed pair of Air Jordan 1s for an eye-popping $560,000. As The World's Greatest Sneaker Collections editor Woody puts it, these jaw-dropping figures aren't just milestones for collectors. They signal something bigger: the arrival of wealthy investors treating sneakers as the next frontier in high-value assets. Since those historic auctions, the private market for rare kicks has gone into overdrive, with prices soaring to mind-boggling levels. 'Looking back, those early numbers almost seem like a steal,' Woody notes, 'if you can wrap your head around the idea of worn sneakers costing as much as real estate.' And it's only getting crazier. With the rise of sneaker auctions and ever-growing interest in one-of-a-kind pairs and game-worn icons, the ceiling keeps climbing. Whether it's a piece of sports history or an ultra-exclusive design, these sneakers are redefining what collectibles can be. So, get ready–we're counting down the most expensive sneakers ever sold, and the list is nothing short of wild. In 1972, when Nike was still taking its first steps as a brand, co-founder and track coach Bill Bowerman crafted one of the earliest performance sneakers in its history. Nicknamed the 'Moon Shoes' due to their unique waffle-pattern soles that left prints resembling those of astronauts, only around a dozen pairs were ever made. These handmade prototypes were distributed to athletes competing in the United States Track & Field Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, and eventually went on to inspire the launch of Nike's iconic Waffle Trainer in 1974. Decades later, in 2019, these relics from Nike's earliest days made headlines again–this time for setting a new benchmark in the world of sneaker collecting. Sold at a Christie's auction, the Moon Shoes became the first sports sneakers to break into the auction world, helping to legitimise a niche that has only grown bigger since. Though experts initially valued the pair at around $160,000, the final bid soared to nearly three times that amount. The buyer, Canadian entrepreneur Miles Nadal, described the shoes as nothing less than 'a true piece of sports and pop culture history.' Just a few months earlier, yet another pair of Air Jordan 1s had made auction history—setting a new benchmark for the highest price ever paid for sneakers at the time (surpassing the 2019 record listed below). This particular pair, worn by Michael Jordan himself during a game in his rookie season and bearing his signature, became the center of a bidding frenzy. As the 10-day auction neared its close, the offers skyrocketed by a jaw-dropping $300,000 in the final hours, ultimately selling for an astonishing $560,000. On April 12, 2013, Kobe Bryant etched his name into sports legend with one of the grittiest performances of his career. Midway through a game against the Golden State Warriors, he tore his Achilles tendon–yet remarkably, he stayed on the floor, scored a total of 32 points, and even sank two crucial free throws while barely able to stand. It was a defining moment of his relentless 'Mamba Mentality'. So, it came as no shock when, in February 2025, the sneakers he wore during that iconic night–drenched in Lakers purple and gold–fetched a jaw-dropping price at Sotheby's, soaring past the half-a-million-dollar mark. In August 2020, riding the wave of The Last Dance frenzy, a pair of game-worn Air Jordan 1s made headlines after selling for over $500,000 at a Christie's auction. The shoes, worn by Michael Jordan during an exhibition game in Italy, were expected to hit around $850,000 but still drew massive attention. What set this pair apart? A piece of shattered glass lodged in the sole–reportedly from the very backboard Jordan broke with a dunk during that game. (Not to be confused with the later 'Shattered Backboard' sneakers.) That same auction also saw another pair, worn during the 1992 Olympic gold medal match, go for more than $100,000. After Game 5 of the 1998 NBA Finals, Utah Jazz ball boy Preston Truman received an unforgettable gift: the sneakers Michael Jordan wore during his legendary 'Flu Game' performance. Battling food poisoning, Jordan led the Bulls to victory in what became one of the most iconic games of his career. In 2020, capitalizing on the buzz from The Last Dance documentary and renewed interest in Air Jordans, Truman sold the black-and-red Air Jordan 12s to Grey Flannel Auctions for just over $200,000. By 2023, the same pair fetched a staggering $1.38 million at auction. However, the story took a twist–Truman later sued the auction house, alleging he was pressured into the original sale. That legal battle is still unfolding, but one thing's certain: few sneakers carry the weight of basketball history quite like these. When a pair of Nike Air Ships worn by Michael Jordan sold for nearly $1.5 million at Sotheby's in late 2021, they briefly held the title of the most expensive sneakers ever and still rank among the priciest sports memorabilia in history. Worn during Jordan's fifth NBA game in 1984, the Air Ships are legendary–not just for their rarity, but because they predate his iconic Air Jordan line. As the first sneakers he wore in the league, they represent a pivotal moment in both basketball and sneaker culture. It's not just Jordans dominating the luxury sneaker scene. In spring 2021, Sotheby's made headlines again with the sale of a one-of-a-kind pair of Nike Air Yeezy prototypes – the very pair Kanye West wore during his 2008 Grammy performance. The price was over $1 million, marking the first time sneakers crossed the million-dollar mark. The historic purchase was made by investment platform RARES. Its founder, Gerome Sapp, described the move as a way to make sneaker culture more accessible and financially empowering for the communities that built it – calling the Yeezys 'a piece of history.' Los Angeles-based conceptual artist Matt Senna is known for turning iconic sneakers into resin sculptures, typically sold in limited runs for around $450. But in 2020, he pushed the envelope by creating a one-of-a-kind Air Jordan 10 entirely out of 24-karat gold. Commissioned by none other than Drake, the shoes aren't wearable–each weighs about 100 pounds–but they earn a spot on this list purely for their bold, over-the-top brilliance. After ESPN's The Last Dance reignited global fascination with Michael Jordan in 2020, demand for sneakers tied to his legendary final season soared. In a landmark Sotheby's sale last year, a pair of Air Jordan 13s–worn by MJ during Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals–sold for a jaw-dropping $2.2 million. The iconic 'Bred' colorway sneakers, still in impressive shape despite their game-worn status, became one of the most expensive sports shoes ever sold–proving once again that when it comes to sports memorabilia, Jordan reigns supreme. Earlier this year, Sotheby's made sneaker history by selling the 'Dynasty Collection' for a record-breaking $8 million–the highest sneaker sale in the auction house's history. The collection featured eight individual sneakers, each worn by Michael Jordan during the NBA Finals across eight different seasons. The origin of this unique collection dates back to 1991, when Bulls PR officer Tim Hallam asked Jordan for one of his game-worn shoes–a tradition MJ continued after every Finals series. These are the unmatched sneakers he kept. What made the sale even more remarkable? None of the shoes came as pairs. The lot was accompanied by signed photos of Jordan–wearing just one sneaker–after each championship win, captured by photographer Bill Smith. Source: GQ
Business Insider
4 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Mark Zuckerberg paired a $250,000 'grail' watch with his cool guy uniform
Mark Zuckerberg is showing off wrist candy from his pricey watch collection in his everyday looks. After years of dressing in humble hoodies, the billionaire has beefed up his wardrobe with a custom gold chain and a collection of luxury watch brands. Zuckerberg, who Forbes estimates is worth nearly $250 billion, recently paired a basic T-shirt with a limited-edition watch. An iteration of the same model sold at auction for $254,000 in April, Sotheby's said. Zuckerberg's F.P. Journe Chronomètre Bleu Byblos is one of 99 of that model made in 2014 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the watchmaker's boutique in Beirut. Watch industry veterans identified the timepiece after Zuckerberg wore it during an April 28 appearance on Theo Von's "This Past Weekend" podcast. "It's one of those pieces that quietly signals, 'I know what I'm wearing,' without shouting it," Eugene Tutunikov, CEO of SwissWatchExpo, told Business Insider. Zuckerberg has other F.P. Journe watches in his collection. For his keynote at Meta Connect 2024, he chose a watch that resembled one from the Souveraine collection. Sotheby's estimated that it could fetch up to $54,000 at auction. "F.P. Journe is one of the most respected independent watchmakers, celebrated for its superb finishing, innovation, and incredibly limited runs," Paul Altieri of Bob's Watches told BI. Despite the rarity and hefty price tag, the Chronomètre Bleu Byblos is a "simpler" time-only choice for the Meta CEO compared to the more complicated pieces he's been spotted in, Joshua Ganjei, CEO of European Watch Company, said. Zuck wasn't known for flashy fashion choices when he broke onto the tech scene as a college dropout. Over the years, his zip-up hoodie and blue sweater became a staple of his style. Last year, he was captured admiring a Richard Mille watch worn by the Reliance Industries heir Anant Ambani. "You know, I never really wanted to get a watch, but after seeing that, I was like, watches are cool," Zuckerberg is heard saying in a video of the interaction. Today, he's turned a corner to crank up his style. His custom gold chain — made in honor of his daughters — is paired with many of his outfits, and he's rarely seen without a pair of the Ray-Ban smart glasses powered by Meta AI. Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, previously praised Zuckerberg's new steeze in June 2024. Mosseri said his boss spent a long time "not wasting any energy on deciding what to wear." Instead, Zuckerberg decided to wear "the same thing every day for a long time as a lot of tech execs have done." Zuck is entering a new fashion era in his own way, with a watch that's a "perfect fit" for him, Tutunikov said. "It's almost like the thinking man's grail: no flashy logos, no gimmicks, just insane craftsmanship and a bit of mystery," he said.
Axios
a day ago
- Business
- Axios
VC legal dispute threatens biotech startups
Apple Tree Partners has invested billions of dollars to launch and grow biotech companies, but now a legal dispute threatens to shut many of them down. The big picture: Apple Tree has an unusual structure for a venture capital firm, according to court documents filed in Delaware and the Cayman Islands. Since 2012 it's been almost entirely funded by one man, a Russian oligarch named Dmitry Rybolovlev. If that name sounds familiar, it's probably because you remember his unsuccessful art fraud allegations against auction house Sotheby's. Rybolovlev made more than $2.4 billion of commitments to Apple Tree, but not via a blind pool. Instead, Apple Tree would propose "budgets" for new portfolio companies for approval by Rybolovlev or a representative of his family office. Zoom in: This concentrated capital arrangement was risky for Apple Tree portfolio companies, particularly given that Apple Tree sought to be their only investor via tranched financings. The protection was a "global default" provision. Were Rybolovlev to refuse a valid capital call, the fund could confiscate up to 50% of his interests. Behind the scenes: According to a lawsuit filed by Apple Tree, this arrangement worked fine until shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. After that, Apple Tree claims that Rybolovlev got stingy. By September 2022, his family office allegedly said it only would approve "austerity" budgets going forward. There were some legal wranglings in the Caymans, which got resolved. Fast forward: Last month, Apple Tree issued over $100 million in capital calls — $87 million of which is earmarked for up to 10 portfolio companies. This is according to a Cayman's complaint by Rybolovlev because much of Apple Tree's filing in Delaware is redacted. He claims that he is not legally obligated to pay because, in part, the companies haven't met certain milestones. Moreover, he accuses Apple Tree of "serious mismanagement and a lack of probity." Apple Tree calls the situation "an emergency," saying that several of its portfolio companies "face imminent collapse." In fact, a source tells Axios that one of them has already signaled its plans to shutter. Look ahead: The firm is asking the court for specific performance (i.e., require that Rybolovlev meet his capital call), and argues that Rybolovlev actually wants them to struggle and sell to him on the cheap.
Mint
a day ago
- Business
- Mint
The art market needs a boost. It thinks the Middle East is the answer.
Auction houses, dealers and advisers are betting on the Middle East to play an outsized role in the next art-market turnaround. Despite a fragile cease-fire between Israel and Iran and unstable pockets elsewhere in the region, the art world thinks it's time to capitalize on the Middle East as a major art destination. Sotheby's conducted its first sale in Saudi Arabia a few months ago, after receiving an infusion of around $1 billion from Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth fund ADQ last year. Swiss art fair Art Basel is preparing to launch its next edition in Qatar, the tiny emirate that also recently landed a coveted spot to build a permanent national pavilion in the garden of the prestigious Venice Biennale. Private art-consulting firms are already cozying up to the region's sovereign families who have long championed and sometimes bankrolled various cultural festivals and institutions. 'Even though we're at a particular dark spot politically, the Gulf states are super dedicated to creating an arts sector in their economies, so we see real opportunity there," said Ed Dolman, a former chief executive of Christie's and Phillips auction houses who is eyeing the region's art-market potential. The push comes as mainland China's economic volatility has largely compelled that country to slow down the pace of its frenzied museum-building boom that saw more than 1,500 new spaces open across the country between 2009 and 2014, according to the China Museums Association. Some of its billionaire collectors have similarly ended their shopping sprees, with private museums like the Long Museum even auctioning off some of its art holdings. While art-related tourism across Asia Pacific hasn't disappeared entirely, topping $18 billion last year, according to California-based research firm Grand View Research, dealers say it's unclear if China will once again dominate the top end of the art market like it did before the pandemic. To fill the vacuum, art-world insiders are exploring alternative art hubs, including South Korea and the Middle East. The Middle East is still confronting the continuing war between Israel and Gaza as well as juggling diplomatic tensions elsewhere, but the region is also well-funded by oil-rich states who are eager to assume the mantle of global cultural clout. For decades, several sovereign families across the Gulf have been building museums and extending arts education for its own while lobbying for local artists to get international attention. Art-related tourism in the Middle East and Africa surpassed $3 billion last year and is projected to reach $3.6 billion by decade's end, the Grand View firm said. Dolman, who once advised the Qatari royal family, is the latest rainmaker to rejoin the art hunt in the Middle East, joining forces this week with several other auction veterans to launch an art-management consulting firm with the region's potential in mind. The firm, New Perspectives Art Partners, will cater to major art trusts and estates while also appealing to Gulf State sovereign families and collectors globally, Dolman said. The others in the new firm include Philip Hoffman, a major art-backed lender and founder of the Fine Art Group; Brett Gorvy, a former Christie's executive and co-founder of gallery Lévy Gorvy Dayan; and Patti Wong, a former Sotheby's expert known for representing Asian billionaires. Also joining is Dolman's son, Alex Dolman, a former auction specialist at Sotheby's and Phillips who said he's been cultivating ties to collectors in the Middle East privately for years. He has identified a new generation of younger buyers in the region who want to support their favorite regional artists while also collecting internationally. 'Understanding what they want and having that local expertise matters," the younger Dolman said. (Each of the firm's partners will keep their day jobs but agree to work under the new firm's mantle on client-related projects.) Looking ahead, more buyers—and artists—are expected to spring up across the Middle East as well as North Africa and India. Noah Horowitz, chief executive of Art Basel, said this week that he remains '100% committed" to launching Basel's next fair in Doha, Qatar, next February. 'We are leaning into a region where a huge amount of work has been done already, and we just want to accelerate the market there," he said. Horowitz said Art Basel Qatar will start small, with around 50 galleries, and five galleries with ties to the region participated in its flagship fair last week in Switzerland. Art Basel gave its best emerging artist award last week to Mohammad Alfaraj, a multidisciplinary artist from eastern Saudi Arabia who makes poetic work using palm fronds and dates. Alfaraj currently has a show at Dubai's Jameel Arts Centre. All of this is giving the region a watch-this-space atmosphere that's been largely missing as the market has endured a slump for the past two years. Market makers can seize on a new locale to scout and a new collector base to court. On Tuesday, Sotheby's held a major London summer sale, and it said a Middle Eastern collector won Yu Nishimura's 'Through the Snow," for $400,000, four times its high estimate. Qatar, a cultural pioneer in the region, has already enlisted Lebanese architect Lina Ghotmeh to design its own permanent pavilion within the garden complex of the next Venice Biennale. Qatar is only the third nation in the past half-century after Australia and South Korea to be granted space in the Biennale's Giardini. The Biennale is the art-world equivalent of the Olympics. 'It's a clear sign of lasting intent," Horowitz added. Write to Kelly Crow at
Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
The Art Market Needs a Boost. It Thinks the Middle East Is the Answer.
Auction houses, dealers and advisers are betting on the Middle East to play an outsized role in the next art-market turnaround. Despite a fragile cease-fire between Israel and Iran and unstable pockets elsewhere in the region, the art world thinks it's time to capitalize on the Middle East as a major art destination. Sotheby's conducted its first sale in Saudi Arabia a few months ago, after receiving an infusion of around $1 billion from Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth fund ADQ last year. Swiss art fair Art Basel is preparing to launch its next edition in Qatar, the tiny emirate that also recently landed a coveted spot to build a permanent national pavilion in the garden of the prestigious Venice Biennale. Private art-consulting firms are already cozying up to the region's sovereign families who have long championed and sometimes bankrolled various cultural festivals and institutions.
