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Sought-after kicks: Singer Kanye West wore this special pair at the 2008 Grammy Awards
Photo: JEROME FAVRE / EPA
There is usually not much money left for used sneakers.
On the other hand, it is completely different when the wearer is prominent - and the couple even designed it themselves.
Both apply to the now auctioned pair of shoes by US rapper Kanye West.
As the auction house Sotheby's announced, the prototypes of the Nike Air Yeezy 1 sneakers were auctioned for 1.8 million dollars (about 1.5 million euros).
West had worn the black leather shoes with a size 45-46 at the 2008 Grammy Awards.
They were made exclusively for the company and established the start of his own shoe line.
The sneakers went on sale in limited editions in 2009, with a successor in 2012.
West has long been under contract with another manufacturer
Then West ended its collaboration with the US sporting goods giant.
The rapper was of the opinion that he was not getting enough of the revenue - and switched to the German Nike competitor Adidas.
An apparently lucrative deal for everyone involved: According to an internal note from the bank UBS, about which the news agency Bloomberg reported, the Yeezy brand alone achieved a turnover of 1.7 billion dollars last year.
According to Sotheby's, it was the highest price ever paid for a pair of sneakers in a public auction.
They were sold by the sneaker collector Ryan Chang.
Extraordinary trainers have recently hit the headlines again and again with high prices at auctions.
In the summer, for example, a pair of white sneakers that a co-founder of the sporting goods company Nike had handcrafted around 50 years ago was auctioned for $ 162,000.
A pair of basketball legend Michael Jordan sneakers brought in $ 560,000.
Investors can buy shares in the shoe
The "Yeezys" now auctioned will continue to earn money in the future.
The buyer of the couple is the sneakers investment platform "Rares".
The company was founded by American football player Gerome Sapp.
There, buyers can buy shares in rare sports shoes, just like shareholders can buy shares in a company.
fek / dpa / AFP
