It’s not the Hunger Games, it’s not the iPhone 5, it’s Kanye’s Nike sneakers.
About 35 people were camping outside of CRSVR Sneaker Boutique Thursday at 632 State St. and the employees expect more than one hundred to line State Street come Friday.
Mike Lopez drove up Monday from Los Angeles to claim the ninth spot in line and a chance to wear the new Kanye West’s Nike Air Yeezy II kicks that debut Saturday. Lopez told me the first thing he’s going to do is put them on but some of the other folks in line are going to flip the $245 shoes for a nice profit.
Dozens of eBay bids range from $2,000 to $5,000, and one pair was pre-sold for more than $90,000. A pair of flashy Nike’s sold for more than three times the amount of my Cal Poly San Luis Obispo education.
“Some people want them as a part of their collection and it’s the money aspect as well,” Lopez said.
CRSVR employee Silvia Morales said the small boutique shoe store headed by DJ Vice and Nick Sakai has been getting hundreds of calls a day. Apparently, the owners have a Tier 0 account with Nike, meaning only select stores will be getting limited shipment.
There are less than a dozen stores in Los Angeles that will release the Yeezy’s, and only three in the Bay Area — 3,000 will be released worldwide. In other words, it’s been good for business, Morales said.
“I think it’s insane, we started as a small store; now it’s blowing up,” she said. “We’re always thanking the owners, we’re really blessed to work here.”
So Fresh
International grocery store chain Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market will celebrate its grand opening Wednesday at 336 N. Milpas St.
Fresh and Easy carries fresh-prepared meals, meats and produce that have no artificial colors or flavors, no added trans fats and no high-fructose corn syrup, as well as national brand products. Some of the Scolari’s customers will likely migrate to the new grocery store since Nevada-based Scloari’s Food & Drug Co. closed its California stores in May.
Fresh and Easy replaced a handful of local businesses, including Whitefoot Meat Market, El Pollo Nor Tenor, a nail salon and a dry cleaner.
Summer’s Here
Swimwear retailer Swimspot opened its new storefront last week at at 651 Paseo Nuevo.
The Southern California business offers women’s active clothing, designer swimwear and accessories.
Rendezvous
The Santa Barbara Region Chamber of Commerce is hosting a networking event at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Synergy Business and Technology Center at 1 N. Calle Cesar Chavez.
The summer mixer will include local business people, chamber members and the Santa Barbara Young Professionals Club.
— Noozhawk staff writer Alex Kacik can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @NoozhawkBiz, @noozhawk and @NoozhawkNews. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.Cuban revolution/a
