Takeways from The Supreme x Nike Collection Release Cancellation.

It's always a bummer when this happens, but I can't say no one saw it coming.

The forced cancellation of the Nike x Supreme Spring/Summer 2014 collection is pretty much a microcosm of how the sneaker game is nowadays. It may have been an isolated incident, but it's one we've grown accustomed to hearing about when hyped releases in limited quantities come about. 

In case you haven't heard, Nike and Supreme teamed up to release a small collection featuring some basketball jerseys, shorts, and a couple of Air Foamposite Ones to match. With the release being yesterday, people camped out way in advance. And as the drop day drew near, more people lined up, and the situation increasingly looked like it was only a matter of time before it got out of control. Ultimately, the NYPD stepped in and ultimately cancelled Supreme's in-store release due to concerns for public safety and "near-riotous behavior". 

I've been in line for sneakers before, and I've had to go to a store really early just to have a better shot at getting shoes I want. I get how thrilling the highly-charged atmosphere of a sneaker line or campout can be, but I question why did people embrace this to be the norm? Lines and campouts in The Philippines are pretty mild compared to those abroad, but you gotta feel for people stuck with the thought of getting mugged, hurt, or even killed for their sneakers every time they have to line up. 

Anyone else aside from Swaggy P who managed to score a pair? 

Who's to blame for how out of hand things have gotten now? It's really hard to point a finger at a single source. Is it the shoe companies who purposely limit production, riling up the demand from their target market? The greed that drives people to buy more pairs of the same shoe just to flip on ebay or Facebook? The "you ain't up on this!" mentality that some sneakerheads may have? Or the "any press is still press" notion that brands especially in streetwear seem to embrace? Over the course of this article, I've actually raised more questions that I have answers for. But if those are the things I'll be thinking about when I'll be waiting in line for the next hyped up drop, the more inclined I am to not line up at all.