How Scalping Has Affects Accessibility Products

    Around February 2021, Nike announced that it was going to launch its new line of shoes known as FlyEase. The new line would consist only of hands-free shoes and would showcase Nike's innovative new design. The FlyEase line of shoes was originally created for accessibility since the hands-free design would make it easier for people with certain disabilities to independently and easily slide on the shoes. On top of this, the designers emphasized the aesthetics of the shoes, ensuring that the design didn't hinder its appearance. The shoe differs from a regular slip-on shoe because it has hinges and an elastic which allows for the shoe to actually bend upward and let the user push down their foot to simply put on the shoe. The first design on the FlyEase line of shoes was going to be the Nike GO FLyEase shoes. When it was announced the internet went crazy, the innovative new design, as well as its accessibility became a huge topic of discussion. In their video about the product, the designers say that the product design soon became universal, where everyone could see the practicality of the hands-free shoe, from pregnant women on the go to athletes with prosthetics. 

    The new GO FLyEase shoe was meant to be a limited release coming out on April 30, 2021. All of the hype and positive attitudes surrounding the shoes had followed until this date, however, this is what ultimately caused some problems. Due to the popularity of the upcoming shoes, upon release scalping bots had bought up the majority of the limited stock, and they were being resold at for over three times the price. This was revealed by a Tik Tok user known as "notlewy" where he spoke about how the reselling had basically made the shoe inaccessible, and people with disabilities were not able to get the shoe unless they paid an outrageous price for them.  

Media referenced: 

 Here is the article that discusses the Tik Tok and controversy surrounding the shoes: https://hypebeast.com/2021/5/nike-go-flyease-resale-controversy-designed-disability-shoe-info

This is Nike's video about the design of the shoe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTRsiWa79rY