A pair of Off-White Air Jordan 1s
AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack
Sneaker collectors are frustrated with Nike after its SNKRS app glitched during the Air Jordan 1 “Lost and Found” drop.
Many took to Twitter to complain of error messages and app crashes that prevented them from entering the drawing.
Nike has faced mounting criticism for its struggle to prevent bots and resellers from taking over hyped shoe drops.
Thousands of sneakerheads hoping to get their hands on Nike’s highly anticipated new Air Jordan 1 Chicago “Lost and Found” are furious after app outages and glitches prevented many from nabbing the shoes.
Frustrated collectors took to Twitter en masse Saturday to commiserate over technical issues on Nike’s SNKRS app that stopped them from entering a drawing to purchase the sneakers. Many compared the botched sneaker drop to the chaos surrounding the Ticketmaster sale for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour earlier this week, in which fans waited hours in online queues and similarly experienced website crashes.
While the sneakers — one of Nike’s most iconic models, re-released in red and white Chicago Bulls colors — were expected to sell out within minutes, the glitches mark the latest in a series of frustrations for collectors and Nike fans.
It also appears to be a failure for Nike to make good on efforts to better democratize the process. For the new Air Jordan 1s, Nike doubled down on its push to make drops more fair, offering early access for top fans, increasing the number of sneakers available to 500,000, and announcing plans to crack down on bots and resellers.
Instead, many sneakerheads were greeted with error messages and app crashes when they logged in on Saturday.
Nike did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
On Twitter, many joked about the similarities between the sneaker drop and Ticketmaster’s disastrous Taylor Swift tour debacle, with one user even calling upon the Department of Justice to also investigate the Nike matter.
—Jonas (@jonastheprince) November 19, 2022
—allie (@plssnoperceive) November 19, 2022
—Complex Sneakers (@ComplexSneakers) November 19, 2022
Others joked that Twitter seemed to be more functional than the SNKRS app, despite widespread layoffs and a mass exodus under new leader, Elon Musk.
—Dwayne (@districtdwayne) November 19, 2022
—Josiah Durie (@josiahdurie) November 19, 2022
Some just called for a more functional and fair system.
—Austin N (@ArracetiA) November 19, 2022
—Rye-B (@ImmaCallYouBack) November 19, 2022