A few outgrown pairs of Nikes were never supposed to turn into a statewide sneaker operation. But for Louisville teen Ethan Skees, listing five pairs online for $50 each was the spark. The shoes sold almost instantly, and a side hustle was born.
From Outgrown Sneakers To Serious Money
According to a report by local news broadcaster Wyoming News Now, back then, Ethan was a high school sophomore making a little cash as a server assistant and growing out of the shoes he loved to collect. Instead of tossing them, he posted them on Poshmark and eBay. When those first pairs moved fast, he started roaming school hallways, buying classmates’ old sneakers for $10 and flipping them online.
Soon, he was moving about 20 pairs a week and pulling in $300 to $600, enough to quit the restaurant job and focus on sneakers. By junior year, he’d turned cleaning, photographing and shipping pre-loved Jordans, Dunks and Yeezys into his main income stream.
Turning A Teen Hustle Into A Storefront
In July 2024, at 17, Ethan opened his first buy-sell-trade shop, 502.snkrplug, in Louisville. By December 2025, he’d already upgraded into a 4,000-square-foot store and added a second location, plus clothing. In total, he’s sold more than 3,000 pairs and generated around $400,000 in sales.
Most days, customers walk in with shoes they don’t want. Ethan and his team buy, trade and resell them, with prices ranging from $50 basics to $3,000. He still travels to buy from collectors, all while studying business administration at the University of Louisville and eyeing expansion across Kentucky and eventually into major markets like Los Angeles and New York.
Playbook For Young Resellers
Ethan’s philosophy was to start with what you own, learn what buyers actually want and keep reinvesting. For teens staring at a closet full of “used” sneakers, his story is a reminder that those kicks might be inventory, and not clutter waiting to be emptied into a box in the basement.
Photo Courtesy: 2p2play on Shutterstock.com
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