There’s a thing happening now a days… Actually, it’s always been happening but it seems like the methodology has worsened. It’s a thing I like to call; ‘the art of dodgy marketing.’ It’s an incredibly common thing, more so now than usual. I mean there was always dodgy marketing before, there has been since the inception of pushing merchandise. But most of the time it was still in the best interest of selling the product. Lately it seems to have devolved into something else and a big part of what has marked this change is the introduction of social media.

At first, nobody knew how truly powerful it was as a marketing tool. But we do now. This past decade we have seen how valuable it can be when used correctly, and how damaging it can be when it’s not. For example, some designers and brands find it in their best interests to make as much noise as they can to move traffic and create stories at the time of a release. In this example you can look to someone like Kanye West. He has become a master of dodgy marketing. Most of the time you don’t hear much for him but every time one of his albums or documentaries are close to release we hear some noise. By ‘happenstance,’ he finds the time to pipe up and start posting tweets and instagram posts about his ex wife’s new boyfriend and how he wants to be a better father to his children. They say that any publicity is good publicity and I guess in Kanye’s case, it’s very true.

Now the easy thing to do in that situation, especially if you’re trying to earn the trust of your family and loved ones again, is to show it. Not to post over the internet how much of a changed man you want to be. Might I add, just before I finish up on this, is that once Donda 2 released the ‘Skete’ tweets stopped and we’re back to drama-free Kanye. Which I only say this to strengthen my theory of dodgy marketing tactics being deployed. It’s really is reprehensible… but it works. The headlines are about him all up until the release of the album, the story is focused on him, and the only marketing tools it took, in this case, were his kids and family. Pretty disgusting behaviour to rope them into your promotion but this is the state of social media marketing. Control the narrative, create the story, and remind everyone that they want your stuff.

So how does this relate at all to Bodega’s 15th anniversary sneaker? Well first of all, Kanye’s album market methodology isn’t strictly a non sneaker thing. It has been deployed in the sneaker world, too. I could name and shame the people who have done it in the sneaker realm but I’m not trying to write a takedown piece on all the people who use shitty tactics to justify their bottom lines… not just yet anyways. It’s just to illustrate how bad it can get. Why I’m mentioning this is because I see it a lot with certain designers, so much so that it’s becoming the go-to marketing strategy. Frankly, it’s easier to post some dumb tweets riling up the community who pays your wage than it is to actually do some legwork into your marketing. But just because it’s easier, doesn’t make it meaningful.

But honestly, marketing is not all bad. And the Bodega 990v3, is a shining example of marketing done right.

Bodega did an awful lot of work into their marketing push. They had over 10 instagram photos, all with different captions explaining their process behind the shoe they made, 2 high quality promo videos, 1 unboxing video, appearances from local Massachusetts natives and musicians like the Van Buren Records collective modelling the shoe, they had it all. And this was after their sneaker leaked 6 full months before the marketing campaign rolled out. Which is truly amazing. I’ve seen other designers give up on their concerted marketing push and just revert to showing half a toe-box from the shoe, or 3 quarters of the box once their shoes have leaked. I’ve seen designers and brands cry like babies that people are able to make their designs on nb1 and chuck a tantrum when people leak their shoes early and fall into dodgy marketing instead. And I guess who could blame them when it’s cheaper to post an in hand shot of your latest leaked shoe that everyone has seen the renders of 10 months ago than it is to actually put some love and care into it because ‘F it, those nerds will buy it anyway.’ Which… I guess It’s true. But when a brand/designer doesn’t decide to take the easy way out and puts incredible amount of effort into its release, it truly is appreciated by the people it means something to. It adds to the story, to the mystique, and to the enjoyment of the shoe. It shows the level of care they have for the people who buy their product and those who support them. I needed to spend a good amount of time on this praising the hard work Bodega did here because it’s not something you see often. The only time it’s happened this year to my recollection is with the SNS 991 pack.

For a 15th anniversary shoe and their first made in USA collaboration, Bodega wanted everything to be perfect and honestly, it is. It takes guts to do things the right way, it’s not always easy to knowingly take the path of most resistance but it has a payoff. It is one of the purest examples of what modern marketing should be. Tipping your hat to those who helped you get where you are, while paying homage to the hometown that embraced your brand in the first place.

Enough about marketing, I’m not trying to lecture a ted talk here about the dangers of being a lazy prick in your marketing efforts. I’m here to talk about what makes this shoe so special to me. And if I’m honest, it’s quite hard to actually put it into words.

I guess I’ll just tell you the story of me seeing the leak for the first time. On my instagram, I recently posted about the JoeFreshGoods 990v3 and my comparisons between that one and the Bodega 990v3. At the time of the leaks a lot of the community posted about which one do you prefer. At first, I wasn’t sure which one I liked better but I knew both of them were my most anticipated shoes that year. I thought they were quite similar at first, which if you own both pairs, they’re pretty much night and day from each other. But that’s what it was at first. Debate on which one is better and which one you’d save your money for. I can’t remember when it exactly happened but my mind was firmly made up on the Bodega being the better of the two. Which is honestly the highest praise I can give it.

I think it comes down to it being much more subtle than the JFG pair but still having an incredible amount of detail on it. Periwinkle lace option, 2006 on one heel — 2021 on the other, teal sock liner, orange hits on the toecap and insole… just an immensely well made shoe. Both of these shoes had great marketing campaigns as well but I still think Bodega’s is the gold standard when it comes to that. But when it really comes down to it? Taste. I think that’s the only thing you can really use to separate the two. There’s a lot of people who say JFG is better and a lot of people who say Bodega had the shoe of the year last year… like me. But it’s really one of the only times where I can’t really debate my stance on it for why it’s objectively better. Like I said, it may be the subtlety, it may be the marketing, it may be a combination of those plus the actual design there’s no right or wrong answer.

I guess if we’re being all historical we shouldn’t forget the bad stuff on this shoe. For instance, the fiasco of the release. Which is a very common pitfall to most collaborative shoes these days.

The story goes that anyone trying to cop from the Bodega website was rudely greeted with an error to their payment then immediately after that message their sizes sold out even though they should have been able to secure their pair. Bodega addressed this issue and claimed there was a payment processor failure. It happens. And unfortunately it dampens the mood of the release because nobody likes playing a rigged game. Just ask anybody who tried to cop a Trophy Room Jordan 1 how much they liked that. Then ask how they felt after seeing Benjamin Kickz with 50+ pairs of them that he intends to upsell 400%. Events like that leave a sour taste in your mouth and make you skeptical of when real problems happens to another brand.

Let me just say that it’s not easy doing these types of releases the right way. They would be nerve wracking because making it fair for everyone uses a lot of resources and man hours to accomplish. In some cases, the bot protection and the marketing can cost almost as much as it takes to sell them gaining no net return. It makes sense when it happens because from a purely profit standpoint, why not just backdoor the pairs at a premium with little to no marketing if its going to net you a lot more? Because it’s a crummy thing to do.

Am I making excuses here for Bodega with this? Maybe a little. I only do it because I know for sure that these pairs weren’t backdoored. A lot of effort was made to release them the way they should have been but like with all things… mistakes happen. Annoying as they are, it’s a learning experience for everyone.

I really should mention here that this fact didn’t deter me from the shoes at all because I didn’t even cop them from Bodega I had to get them from the aftermarket. The thing I did like about it all was that aftermarket prices were fine, I got my first pair at retail and the second pair under retail. Bodega made an abundant amount of sauce so that everyone could eat. So, maybe this part of the release was a deterrent for some, but it didn’t affect me because I wasn’t using it.

There’s not a whole lot more to say really. It’s been well over a year since this shoe released but it still impresses me every single time I see the pair sitting in my spare room. Ever since I got my second pair it hasn’t left my rotation. I wear it at least once a week, which for me, is a lot. I have nothing but good things to say about it in every aspect. It’s my favourite v3 ever made and it actually made me think v3’s were my favourite NB silhouette for a time… I’m still undecided on whether v2’s or v3’s are my favourite it still depends on the day you ask me… But, nevertheless, it’s truly a perfect shoe. Nothing released last year comes close to touching it, I knew early it was my shoe of the year and it didn’t change once. And with revisionist history, it’s still my favourite of last year.

With the current v3 era ending and the vault looming large over the silhouette, I believe in a couple of years time we will look back on this shoe like we do to the 997’s and 8’s of years past and marvel at the Bodega and the JFG v3’s. They are the cream on top of an incredibly large crop in the 990v3 series. Bodega made something very special. Something that is Here to Stay.