Milan is taking a very specific direction

On Saturday, we went to the opening of the first Milan consignment store dedicated to streetwear, Dropout.

We made a report that immediately made me reflect on one aspect.

For a fan of sneakers like myself, Dropout is an absolute paradise, you can find the most coveted and most sought-after releases up to real or unique pieces, like the Nike Air Mag (those of Marty McFly in Back to the Future), my favorite movie ever) and the Air Jordan 1 Retro Reverse Shattered Backboard. The latter, in addition to being a dream of mine that for now remains prohibited, is perhaps one of the most successful colorways from 1985 to today. But there is a peculiarity that makes this pair of shoes unique (that you can see or buy, in case you were millionaires, at Dropout), the left shoe has the swoosh sewn upside down.  

As I wrote earlier, in order to purchase this sneaker you need a bank account with several zeros, in fact, the price of this unique piece is exorbitant so I won't tell you, go and ask in person. Regardless of the merely economic matter, the presence of this unique shoe is a starting point for reflection as I said. In a few months I will blow out 36 candles and the passion for sneakers has been a constant in my life from an early age, the first pair of Jordan I that bought, and which I still jealously guard, is a 9 bought thanks to the excellent report card I brought to the home. I was 11 years old. 

I remember how I was obsessed with the cleaning the shoes, I wanted them to stay perfect, without a minimum defect. Just that feeling led me to wonder, if fifteen years ago I had opened the box of my Air Jordan 1 and had found the swoosh sewn upside down, I would have been able to understand its value? Did I understand the luck that had happened to me? Now the direction of things is clear enough. The lucky man who did what would have been a bitter discovery for me at the time, today finds himself with a shoe that is as good as a studio. Far be it from me to say here whether it is right or wrong, I do not think it is the right thing to do nor do I think makes sense, what I want to emphasize is the complete distortion of the rules in a very clear and obvious. What we could previously consider an error, a defect, is now a value that gives the shoe a uniqueness that makes it a jewel that could be sold by Bulgari or Cartier.

But one thing remains, love. Prices will continue to rise, it may be increasingly difficult to grab a shoe that we desire so much but open the box, discard and take the shoe in hand for the first time will always remain the most beautiful emotion of all.

The direction I was talking about earlier is not just about a small fan base of sneakers fans but has swept across the whole city. Milan will soon host the biggest event dedicated to sneakers, Sneakerness, precisely on 6 and 7 October, this is a clear evidence of the road that the city is going through. The direction is to respond to an increasingly strong need, especially for the youngest, to possess the objects of our contemporary desire, sneakers.

Milan is responding to this need, just think of reality as One Block Down that has gone from 20 square meters scarce in March 22nd to a superstore in Piazza Armando Diaz, or just Dropout that has taken a step in the city he had not yet done anyone by becoming the first store of its kind in Milan.