— Thousands of counterfeit Nike shoes, worth an estimated $2.2 million, have been seized at the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport, federal officials said Wednesday. (credit: Customs And Border Protection) Authorities discovered the 14,806 pairs of shoes on a shipment arriving from China. Customs and Border Protection officers say they were mislabeled as “napkins” in an attempt to disguise the illicit cargo. Import specialists and officials from Nike confirmed the shoes were in violation of the Air Jordan 1 Off-White Air, Air Jordan 12, Air Jordan 1 in blue, black, red and white; Air Jordan 11 and Air Max ’97. These special edition and retro styles are highly coveted by collectors and sport shoes enthusiasts. A legitimate pair can sell for between $1,500 and $2,000 online, federal officials said. Some of the shoes seized looked obviously fake, with “AIR” printed on the sides of the shoes with quotes around them, underneath a Nike swish that appeared to be both taped and sewn on. Such a shipment of genuine shoes would be worth more than $2.2 million. (credit: Customs And Border Protection) “Counterfeit brand-name shoes is a multi-million dollar criminal industry. The trafficking of these items is extremely lucrative and becomes more profitable in markets involving successful and popular products,” LaFonda Sutton-Burke, Customs and Border Protection Port Director of the LA/Long Beach Seaport, said in a statement.
Authorities at the Port of Los Angeles have seized counterfeit retro Nike shoes that would be worth between $1,500 and $2,000 if they were genuine. A shipment originating from China was found to hold 14,806 pairs of fake special edition trainers, mimicking highly sought after styles such as the Air Jordan 1 Off-White Air and the Air Jordan 12, which can sell for $2.2m when legitimate. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered the counterfeit products, which were mislabelled as napkins. Forgeries of brand-name shoes can be very profitable, particularly in markets where the real items sell for a high price.