Saturday’s New York in-store release for one of the month’s biggest sneakers was shut down after throngs of people showed up trying to get their hands on Oregon’s “What the Duck” Nike Dunks.
Social media posts circulated Saturday of an NYPD-flanked queue spilling into the streets in front of Flight Club. As the images and videos appeared to escalate as the day went on, the retailer made a formal announcement that the launch had been called off.
“Flight Club New York’s release of the Dunk Low ‘What the Duck’ has been canceled for today,” read a statement posted by the store. “We will notify our community once it has been rescheduled.”
Several social media uses blamed crowds of resellers for ultimately getting the launch shut down. Some posts even claimed that fake wristbands purporting to guarantee a spot in line had been sold to unsuspecting shoppers.
Meanwhile, Flight Club’s in store releases scheduled for Los Angeles, Miami and Tokyo seemingly went much smoother and there were no accounts of disturbances.
It’s not immediately clear if the decision to reschedule the launch was made by the NYPD or Flight Club, but as of publishing, it appears that the New York in-store release is back on for Sunday. An announcement of the rescheduling was not shared on social media, perhaps in effort to control the crowd.
The Nike Dunk Low “What the Duck” was announced Sept. 23 and features both “Home” and “Away” mismatched colorways with elements of previous Oregon Ducks uniforms. A joint release with NIL collective Division Street’s Ducks of a Feather Brand, proceeds from the limited-edition pairs will benefit student athletes.
Those who weren’t able to attend the in-store launches will still have a chance to pick up the sneakers on Friday, Oct. 11 from GOAT. Each pair retails for $275.
