We’re always looking for authenticity when it comes to our fits. If we’re buying a pair of sneakers, it has to be certified “real”. With businesses like GOAT & StockX as a forefront in selling the most authentic kicks, even to where it has a stamp of approval, there’s always going to be a floating pair of fugazi’s somewhere. The bootlegs, counterfeits, Feezy’s, Fapes, you name it.  There are even pages on Instagram now posting celebrities in these fake branded garments.  

Bootlegs are ever so prominent to be sold anywhere and everywhere. The local Chinatowns and fashion districts within larger cities thrive off of these knock-off designs.  But since the turn of the decade, brands have actually embraced this culture. From Heron Preston to Chinatown Market and even Bootleg Is Better, the designers have embraced the concept of challenging authenticity.  They’re making bootlegs cool again. As “cool” as it is to own a box logo hoodie or the latest SNKRS drop, brands are forming a culture around the fakes. In a recent post, Heron Preston even challenged authenticity and reversed a bootleg of his own design and repurposed it to be an “authorized fake”. How far is too far to make the most authentic bootleg? Here’s a few of our favorite knock-offs concepts from the past decade