Can You Still Trust the Sneaker Resale Market? The Era of Replicas and Fakes

The sneaker resale market, which once promised authenticity and security, is now facing a crisis of trust. Between 2020 and 2025, what was supposed to be a safe haven for collectors and enthusiasts has become a minefield of counterfeits, failed authentication processes, and broken promises. The feeling of distrust of the market in general has risen dramatically in the last five years as well (Figure 1). At the center of this storm is a high-profile lawsuit that's forcing everyone to ask: Can we still trust the platforms we've relied on?


Figure 1: Overall negative trust in resale market conversations (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

The StockX Problem: When "Authenticity Guaranteed" Isn't Enough

A major earthquake hit the sneaker resale world when Nike filed a lawsuit against StockX, one of the industry's most prominent authentication platforms (Figure 2), in 2022. The lawsuit caused a huge spike in the StockX conversation and had the community worried about their kicks. The allegations are serious and strike at the heart of StockX's business model: Nike claims the platform has been selling counterfeit sneakers, directly contradicting the "authenticity guarantee" that StockX built its reputation on.


Figure 2: StockX conversations social universe (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

This isn't just another corporate legal dispute. It's a fundamental challenge to the trust that underpins the entire resale market. If buyers can't trust the platforms that promise to verify authenticity, where does that leave the market?

What Consumers Are Really Saying

Negative sentiment in the overall StockX conversation and social listening data reveals the depth of consumer frustration. The sentiment surrounding StockX tells a troubling story: 40% of conversations are negative (Figure 3), further underscoring concerns over the platform's legitimacy. The trust that took years to build is evaporating in real time.


Figure 3: Overall negative sentiment in StockX conversations (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

The phrase that keeps appearing in conversations is particularly damning: people are saying they're "done" with StockX (Figure 4). This isn't casual dissatisfaction. It's customers walking away from a platform they once championed. 


Figure 4: Overall StockX conversations word cloud (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

What Went Wrong

The landscape has undergone significant changes in recent years. The prevalence and quality of replica sneakers have risen to levels that make them nearly indistinguishable from originals. This evolution has triggered an unexpected response: some consumers are abandoning overpriced resale platforms altogether and openly embracing replicas.

In conversations that traditionally skewed negative toward fake shoes, sentiment is warming (Figure 5). The words "replica" and "replica sneakers" both held positive sentiment in the 70% range. This normalization of replicas represents a fundamental shift in consumer attitudes: when authentic resale becomes prohibitively expensive and authentication becomes unreliable, the stigma surrounding fakes begins to fade.

Figure 5: Replica sneaker conversations net sentiment graph (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

The eBay Alternative: Old School Beats New Tech?

In an unexpected twist, eBay's used shoe marketplace is experiencing a renaissance. With 73% positive sentiment, the original online marketplace is being received remarkably well by the resale community (Figure 6). The platform began pushing into used shoes in 2019, and despite entering late, its entry is now paying dividends. Business Insider wrote about how they were able to build warehouses specifically made for authentication alone. With this, they aimed to authenticate over 2 million shoes in a year. 


Figure 6: Overall positive sentiment in eBay conversations (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

The migration from StockX to eBay isn't solely about authentication concerns. Analysis of eBay shoe-selling conversations reveals that users frequently criticize StockX unprompted (Figures 7 and 8). As one user bluntly stated: "eBay The OG Coming For Stock-X Neck. Once Stock Started Adding All Those Wild Fees, I Knew It Was Over & Deleted The App."

Figure 7: Overall eBay shoe reselling negative conversations word cloud (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.


Figure 8: eBay negative conversations word cloud drilldown (September 2020 - September 2025); Infegy Social Dataset.

Platform Loyalty in a Trust-Broken Market

Fierce competition now defines the resale platform landscape, with users declaring allegiance based on personal experiences rather than marketing promises. This shift represents a fundamental change in how the market operates. Instead of trusting institutional guarantees, consumers are relying on community wisdom, personal networks, and platforms with track records spanning decades rather than a few years.

The democratization of opinions through social media means that one person's authentication failure becomes everyone's cautionary tale. Platforms can no longer rely on carefully crafted brand messaging alone, without real data, when thousands of users share unfiltered experiences in real time.

The Road Ahead

Success in this new landscape will depend on transparency, accountability, and genuine commitment to authentication rather than marketing slogans about it. The platforms that survive will be those that recognize trust must be earned through consistent performance, not promised through advertising.

When a platform's core promise—authenticity—becomes its greatest liability, the ripple effects extend far beyond consumer complaints. Partnership decisions, advertising allocations, and market forecasts all hinge on correctly listening to these signals.

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Key Takeaways for Brands

Transparency beats promises. StockX's "authenticity guarantee" became a liability when it couldn't deliver. One high-profile failure can erase years of trust-building.

Monitor social sentiment as an early warning system. The 40% negative sentiment dominated by words like "fake" and "done" wasn't just complaining - it was customers leaving. Monitor conversations for the language of abandonment, not just dissatisfaction.

Legacy can outweigh innovation. eBay's 73% positive sentiment indicates that an established reputation and consistent performance can outperform newer technology and flashier marketing in skeptical markets.