How do you sell sneakers at auction? We asked Hypeplug, one of the promoters of La Vie Est Belle with Sotheby's, to tell us

Since the explosion of sneaker culture, the idea of transforming a passion into something different has always been part of the dream of hundreds of fans. The resell, understood in its simplest form, has become a key component in the life of a sneaker, often defining the value based on its price on the secondary market, turning some models into what in jargon are called "grail". That's where Hypeplug came from, the project of two college students straddling the end of 2019 and beginning of 2020 as an assignment for a market research course. "We started out doing simple resell and personal shopping targeted often at a VIP clientele by having access to a large address book of vendors and products, while now we're focused and concentrated on other operations," they told us.

If we wanted to dig into the collection of Hypeplug we would find unique models, such as a sample of Air Yeezy signed by Kanye West with a growing value. Although it is a niche market, the sneaker market is now a reality capable of entering the auction houses along with art, antiques and collectibles, opening the door to the future of Hypeplug and collecting. "A very important step for us will be the beginning of events such as exhibitions or temporary or pop-up stores between Paris and Milan to celebrate the transition from online to offline," the guys confessed to us, but they don't want to blurt out yet what will be their most ambitious project. "We are very present online and on social, and we will be even more so in the coming months with a very innovative new service that we think will be able to influence and change the sneakers industry of Europe and the community that is part of it."