StockX’s convoluted Vault NFT program has brought a lot of confusion to the table, especially if you ask Nike. After filing a lawsuit in February claiming StockX confused consumers by infringing on their trademarked sneakers, the Swoosh did some research of their own. Over the course of two months, Nike purchased multiple fake sneakers from StockX. Now counterfeiting claims and false advertising claims are being tacked onto the existing court documents.
As stated in the amended lawsuit, “Those four pairs of counterfeit shoes were all purchased within a short two-month period on StockX’s platform, all had affixed to them StockX’s ‘Verified Authentic’ hangtag, and all came with a paper receipt from StockX in the shoe box stating that the condition of the shoes is 100% Authentic.”
This only confirms suspicions the community has had for years in regards to how accurate StockX is at authenticating products. Documented cases of fake sneakers passing through StockX have circulated social media and garnered millions of views on YouTube.
StockX isn’t taking these claims lightly, putting out a scathing press statement claiming that they’ve “…invested millions to fight the proliferation of counterfeit goods…” and also included “…hundreds of Nike employees — including current senior executives — use StockX to buy and sell products.” Overall, StockX believes the whole lawsuit is baseless and that Nike is grasping at straws, stating “Nike's challenge has no merit and clearly demonstrates their lack of understanding of the modern marketplace.”
Will consumers rush to other platforms such as eBay and GOAT for their resale purchases? Perhaps local shops and resellers will come out on top? Time will only tell how the lawsuit itself will play out and if this whole situation will leave a sour taste in consumers' mouths in regards to trusting the authentication process StockX provides. For updates on this monumental lawsuit against the multi-billion dollar resale platform and more sneaker news, keep it locked to our Twitter andMobile App to stay up to date on future releases.
