Sneaker Freaker 46

The highlight of Issue 46 is a trio of killer collector features. Simply B brings the heat from Miami, while Brooklyn-born Chris Rosario flexes hard with his stash of big-game ballers from the late 90s. Finding a quality BAPE STA collector has been on my to-do list for some time, but the OGs seem to have tapped-out years ago. No doubt about it, Nigo’s fruit-flavoured Air Force 1 knock-offs owned the streets of New York and Tokyo in the early 2000s and took the hype game right up to Nike. 

The BAPE STA bootleg battle segues perfectly into the legal dramas that have engulfed the scene this year as Nike looks to assert some control over John Geiger, Warren Lotas, KickRich and others. Who knows where this daily soap opera will end up, but the 7000-word historical analysis should offer plenty of context as SF delve deep into an issue that balances trademark protection with the endless creativity that customisers bring to the game. There’s way, way more of course, but you’ll have to buy a copy to find out.