Nike’s Air Jordan 16 Retro “Countdown Pack” sneakers and the adidas Yeezy Boost 350 Pirate Blacks are a few favorite sneakers you can find in this StockX sneaker authenticator’s closet. Raymond Jones is a level two sneaker authenticator at StockX, curator of a marketplace for apparel and accessories. The company is most notable for its sneaker resell program, and the primary aspect of its authentication process is making sure products are authentic. AfroTech previously reported that StockX has a global team of more than 300 authenticators across 11 authentication locations with a 99.95 percent accuracy rate. Photo Credit: Jeff Kowalsky Fashion was a big part of Jones’ upbringing and one of the reasons why he’s always dreamed of becoming a sneaker authenticator. He recalls being in high school and seeing all his peers apply for jobs at Foot Locker and similar stores so they could be the first to get their hands on the latest Jordans. Jones has been working for StockX since last...

Sneaker authentication is crucial, especially for today’s growing secondary sneaker resale market. GQ reported that the counterfeit sneaker market is worth $450 billion, and complaints of the fraudulent goods have even made it in front of a judge. The United States Department of Homeland Security ran an investigation on a Chinese company named Qing Fu Zeng between February 2012 and December 2016. The international company smuggled 22 shipping containers full of counterfeit Nike and Louis Vuitton sneakers by sea into the United States. According to the complaint, if the sneakers had been authentic, they would have been worth more than $472 million. There was a similar counterfeit ring bust back in 2018 in New York. Sneaker authentication technology is on the rise for reasons like this. Jerome Thompson, authentication manager at GOAT, told FN that one of GOAT’s co-founders launched the sneaker and apparel company in 2009 after accidentally buying a pair of fake Jordans from another...