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LeBron James’ latest sneaker line will go where no Nike sneaker has ever gone before: above the $300 price point.
James debuted his new kicks in the Olympic’s gold medal game, and now Nike has announced they can soon be yours for $315. For comparison, the LeBron 9s sold for only $170.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Nike attributes the price hike to rising labor costs in China and an increase in cotton prices.
Overall, Nike’s prices are expected to rise between 5 to 10 percent. Converse’s Chuck Taylor (Converse is now owned by Nike) will rise from $45 to $50, for example. However, it’s hard to see the price hike of the LeBron line as anything other than a test to see just how much they can sell their higher ended basketball shoes for. We’re just wondering then why they didn’t just set the price at $305, given that James plays for the Heat and all.
The kicks come with all the latest technology, including the Nike+ system, but it’s hard to imagine what exactly necessitated a $145 price hike with this latest model.
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