NYPD Shut Down Adidas 99-Cent Sneaker Stunt on the Bowery Yesterday After it Turned Violent
Police yesterday morning shut down an out-of-control Bowery pop-up selling a limited-edition sneaker collaboration between adidas and AriZona Iced Tea. The huge crowds were the collective answer to the question, what happens when you sell a rare sneaker for 99 cents?
The collaboration yielded two limited-quantity styles – Yung 1 and Continental. Both were available exclusively at the two-day pop-up on the Bowery.
Sneaker-heads began queuing outside 206 Bowery at 3am to guarantee a pair. By yesterday morning, the whole block was mobbed, with throngs of kids spilling into the street. Things turned violent when the crowd learned that there wouldn’t be enough sneakers to go around.
One neighbor relayed a play-by-play:
People were pushing and screaming en masse in the part of the line near 220 Bowery. After crowd/line size went around both sides of the block and got out of control, police and/or the venue cancelled event, only allowing people with ‘bracelet’ to go inside. They had megaphones and were still trying explain that and event cancellation and to get people to disperse earnestly starting at about 10am or 10:15am. Not many in the crowd were leaving as of about 10:20am. Many were yelling and chanting after police announcements. Two ambulances standing by (not sure if they were needed). Numerous police vehicles (approx 8) and officers continued to announce, ‘Event has been closed…’ crowd finally dispersed at about 10:30am, some info traffic.
Police ultimately canceled the event and made two arrests, according to Gothamist.
The NYPD had to shut down Adidas’ Arizona Iced Tea pop-up shop in NYC. What happens when you try to sell 99-cent shoes. pic.twitter.com/qbAAONFsnb
— Complex Sneakers (@ComplexSneakers) July 18, 2019
Recent Stories
Another Events Space Called SOMMwhere Rises on Ludlow Street
Once an events space, always an event space. That’s the story at 48 Ludlow Street where a new one just opened. What was the Koala Farm studio for a brief moment is now SOMMwhere. It opened last weekend, pitching itself as a “stylish and sustainable escape” for your next shindig. The media advisory is longer […]
Croman’s Amato Opera Building on the Bowery Welcomes ‘Kissaki’ Sushi Next Month
The onetime Amato Opera on the Bowery – renovated and upscaled years ago – will get a high-end sushi restaurant called Kissaki. Eater reported this week that former Gaijin chef-owner Mark Garcia is behind the 26-seat Omakase venture at 319 Bowery. The Omakase menu will cost $160 for twelve pieces of Nigiri and four kaiseki-style […]
This Guy and Girl Stole a Locked Bike from Inside Orchard Street Building [VIDEO]
A man and his girlfriend were caught on camera Thanksgiving night while stealing a locked bike inside an Orchard Street apartment, the victim tells us. Surveillance video from inside 78 Orchard shows a couple enter the building – perhaps buzzed in by a neighbor – then pause for a moment. In a cavalier move, the […]
‘Peasant’ to Stay on Elizabeth Street Under Chef Marc Forgione
So, it turns out that Peasant will remain on Elizabeth Street, after all. But under new ownership. One month ago, we reported that founding chef-owner Frank DeCarlo reportedly decided against renewal. An apparent change of heart unfolded in the interim… The New York Times this week disclosed that DeCarlo sold the business to Marc Forgione, […]
Longtime Orchard Street Laundromat Felled by Rent Hike
A longtime laundromat on lower Orchard Street is set to close by year end. The Orchard Cleaner and Laundromat is counting the days to December 31, after which its lease reportedly expires. A purported rent hike for the renewal is the cause behind this latest closure. However, details regarding the percentage increase are not immediately […]
