Gold Air Jordans worth more than $10,000 found in a donation bin

The sneakers fell down the donation chute, as did the old shirts, pants and jackets that were regularly donated to the Portland Rescue Mission.

But these sneakers were different. They were a striking metallic gold with a Nike Swoosh. One heel was adorned with the logo of 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, Spike Lee’s production company.

“Normally, clothing is distributed very quickly,” said Erin Holcomb, director of Staff Ministries at the Rescue mission in Portlandwhich provides services such as food and shelter to the homeless and those struggling with addiction in Portland, Oregon. But staff members suspected these shoes were special and set them aside.

The sneakers, Nike Air Jordan Retro 3s, turned out to be a specific variant called “Spike Lee Oscars.” Mr. Lee debuted the shoe in 2019 and wore them to the Oscars when he and his co-writers won best adapted screenplay for the film “BlacKkKlansman.”

The sneakers were not released to the public and only a handful were made.

The Portland couple was gifted in April, and one auction house says it’s worth more than $10,000.

“I don’t think anyone on the staff was a sneakerhead,” Ms. Holcomb said. “We googled it and it was pretty clear what they were. But we thought this was impossible; they must be replicas or imitations.”

Employees took the shoes to a sneaker store for evaluation. “They took them in the back,” Mrs. Holcomb said. “They’ve been gone for a long time.”

When the store’s employees returned, they had a surprise: the sneakers were real. (The store offered to buy them on the spot, Ms. Holcomb said, an offer that was declined.)

The organization then contacted Tinker Hatfield, the famed Nike sneaker designer behind every Air Jordan from 3 to 15. He too confirmed that they were authentic and added that only four or five pairs of the Retro Spike Lee Oscars were made . Mr Hatfield also signed a box he provided to help increase its value.

Donations that could potentially result in a windfall are not common at the Portland Rescue Mission. “I’ve been working here for 17 years,” Ms. Holcomb said. “We never resold anything.”

Now, Sotheby’s sells the sneakers on behalf of the organization in an auction that runs through Monday, with a sales estimate of $15,000 to $20,000. On Friday morning, the highest bid was $7,000.

While major auction houses are mainly seen as places to buy expensive art and antiques, collectibles, wine, memorabilia and, yes, sneakers, have also been known to go under the hammer.

Sneakers “represent an accessible entry point into an already rarefied world, which is why I think we see this market continuing to grow, with today’s collectors – especially in luxury – generally under the age of 40,” says Eric LiBassi, an associate at Sotheby’s. specialist in streetwear and modern collectibles.

“Nike and their subdivision of Jordan Brand have certainly dominated the primary and resale markets over the years,” he said.

For example, the Air Jordan 13s worn by Michael Jordan in Game 2 of the 1998 NBA Finals – featured in the documentary ‘The Last Dance’ – sold this year for $2.2 millionsetting a new world record, Mr. LiBassi said.

As for the sneakers found at the Portland Rescue Mission: “It’s kind of rare to see a different logo on a pair of Jordans,” he said, “so seeing Spike’s 40 Acres and a Mule logo on the heel is an interesting touch and another rare distinction. .”

So who was the benefactor or benefactors? And did they know what they were coming from? “We have no idea who donated them,” Ms. Holcomb said. “It’s a real mystery to us.”

In the unlikely event that a buyer would want to wear the five-figure sneakers in a pickup game, they are a size 12½.