Footwear Leaders Point Out the Irony of Trump Entering the Sneaker Game

Donald Trump, the former president and 2024 Republican presidential candidate, surprised the sneaker community — and footwear industry at large — when he made an unexpected campaign stop at Sneaker Con in Philadelphia on Saturday and introduced his new line of signature sneakers.

The appearance came at an interesting time for Trump, who is facing a number of legal battles as he moves closer to the nomination. It also represented an ironic move for the politician who, during his presidency, introduced the burdensome Section 301 tariffs on China that have had a direct negative impact on the footwear industry in the U.S., which largely relies on imports from China. These tariffs have contributed to soaring footwear prices in the U.S. and have hurt American businesses and working class consumers.

In 2023, full-year footwear prices were up 0.2 percent from 2022. This followed a 4.6 percent increase in 2022 over 2021, which marked the fastest growth rate in four decades, according to the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA). 

“[Trump] had a direct hand in driving up costs for consumers and sneakerheads alike that added an additional upwards of $20 billion in costs to those shoes,” Matt Priest, president and chief executive officer of FDRA, told FN in an interview. The FDRA and other industry groups, like the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) have been vocal about the need to eliminate these harmful footwear tariffs moving forward.

Steve Lamar, president and chief executive officer of the AAFA also noted the irony of the former president entering the very industry he disrupted.

“We always love a good sneaker launch, and we wish the former President well in this new endeavor,” Lamar told FN in a statement. “Of course, Americans also love affordable and authentic fashion, and that is why we continue to urge for a commonsense approach to tariffs — not the reckless tariff increases proposed by former President Trump should he be re-elected, or the reckless tariff increases former President Trump imposed when he was last in office.”

In January, a joint study from FDRA, AAFA and other retail groups called out “detrimental economic impacts” that the Section 301 tariffs on China had effected on American businesses and consumers. Section 301 tariffs of 15 percent were imposed on about half of the footwear imported from China on Sept. 1, 2019. Those tariffs were later reduced on Feb. 14, 2020, to 7.5 percent.

As for the potential success of Trump’s new footwear line, that will depend on several factors, including the willingness of his support base to buy into the messaging of the product as well as how successful the shoe can be outside of a gimmicky context.

“Here, a former President launched the blingiest kick in history of kicks, and in fact, it was well received,” said Marc Beckman, co-founder and CEO of marketing agency DMA United. “That said, consumers will remain true to the old formula: Is the influencer (in this case President Trump) someone who you would like to look like? If the answer is no, the endorsement will fall flat.”