Chaz Anestos
down vintage Nikes to wear , since the kids ’ sizes didn ’ t bring much money . I think this instilled the vintage bug early on , and I didn ’ t even realize it at the time . Wearing vintage was just kind of a thing I always did .
Is there anything you missed out on or anything you regret buying ? I have only one or two purchases that I regret , but so many that I have missed out on . The thing is , you can ’ t dwell on them . I ’ ve had times where I was just busy doing something and didn ’ t see that an eBay item was going off and I forgot to bid , or things like that . You can ’ t be everywhere at once .
What ’ s your most recent vintage purchase ? The pair of “ Cross Country ” racing flats I just mentioned were the most recent purchase . Those were kind of a word-of-mouth , and I was lucky to strike a deal with the guy as I had dealt with him before . Is there one piece you ’ re still looking for ? Most of the ones I ’ m still looking for are from the early and mid 1970s . I would love a pair of “ Kenya Reds ” and “ Finland Blues .” I would like to someday have all the nylon Cortez colorways from the mid to late 1970s as well . And as always , there are PE ’ s and SMU colorways popping up every so often that I don ’ t even know I want until I see them .
What ’ s the craziest thing you ever had to do to get something ? Luckily , I haven ’ t had to do anything too crazy , but a couple of times I ’ ve had to pay quite a bit more than I wanted for something in order to get to something else that the person had . That ’ s happened a couple times . I also have a couple local guys who have some crazy shoes , but they just aren ’ t ready to sell them yet . It is frustrating , but I know I would be the exact same way if I were in their shoes .
How has social media influenced or effected your collecting ? Social media has had a very positive impact on me . It has introduced and brought me much closer with other collectors , many of whom I consider great friends , even though we have never met in person and sometimes don ’ t even speak the same language . A funny aspect of it is , if there is an item I ’ m trying to buy and I miss out on it , I am bound to see it pop up on my Instagram feed before long . It is a pretty tight knit group , and I can ’ t think of a better bunch of people .
How has collecting changed since you started ? When I first got started , the only outlet I had to find vintage was on eBay , or locally at thrift stores . Some things were selling on eBay for super cheap , and I should have bought them all up back then , but I just didn ’ t have the money . Prices seem a bit higher now , but social media has created endless opportunities through networking and such . You never know when you could have the chance to get something good .
What ’ s your goal with your collection ? I don ’ t really have an end goal . Saying I want to collect every pair I can would be ignorant , but I would like to have a vast majority of the shoes Nike produced from their early days . Eventually , maybe I ’ ll liquidate some of the more common models I have and narrow it down a bit . I would love if more people became interested in these as well . From a reselling standpoint , I would hate to see the value of these items plummet , but at the end of the day , I really do appreciate them for what they are , so it wouldn ’ t really matter to me .
24 | Classic Kicks | classickicks . com | Volume 2