Topline
They are big, red, made of rubber and comically larger than the average boot, but they are making waves on social media, made an appearance during New York Fashion Week and WWE Superstar Seth Rollins stomped out The Miz in the boots during Monday Night Raw—and here’s what the craze is about.
A guest is seen wearing a black and green jacket, white top, red beret and Big Red Boots during New ... [+]
Key Facts
A New York-based art collective known as MSCHF—pronounced mischief—is behind the cartoonish big red boots that have made their appearance all over social media.
Dozens of celebrities have been seen wearing the boots, including Oklahoma City Thunder Guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, musician and Glass Onion actress Janelle Monáe and model Sarah Synder.
On TikTok, the boots have garnered hundreds of millions of views, with the most views coming from Jaadiee, a photographer who dresses his grandfather in street wear, and another video of a man struggling to remove the comically oversized footwear.
The aesthetic of the boot has been compared to footwear of popular anime Astro Boy and Dora the Explorer’s sidekick “Boots.”
MSCHF described them as “Cartoon boots for a 3D world” comparing them to fashion designer Alexander McQueen’s Armadillo Boots.
The Big Red Boots dropped online Thursday morning and retailed for $350 on the MSCHF website.
With many trying to get their hands on a pair, the web traffic to the MSCHF website caused it to crash—and when the site was back online the boots were already sold out within minutes.
On the secondary market, prices for the boots have already exceeded $1,000.
MSCHF, the art collective, has a strange line of products not limited to fashion, as they also sell cologne meant to smell like WD-40 and released a nearly half pound giant fruit loop that also sold out.
Key Background
Founded in 2016, MSCHF is not exactly a fashion brand or a producer of consumer goods but describes itself as an “art collective” that engages in art, fashion, tech and capitalism. The company used to fund itself by creating ad campaigns for clients such as Target and Casper but stopped in 2019. Gabriel Whaley, the founder and chief officer, told Insider they now “go all in on our own stuff.” It is unclear how exactly the company maintains funding, but it has had a $12.5 million series B round of funding in 2021, according to PitchBook data.
Nike Lawsuit
The art collective is no stranger to controversy. Last year, in collaboration with rapper Lil Nas X, MSCHF dropped 666 pairs of what it called “Satan” Nikes, which featured redesigned Nike Air Max 97s with a bronze pentagram, upside down cross and real human blood retailing for $1,080, a reference to the Bible passage Luke 10:18. Prior to the “Satan” shoes, MSCHF released “Jesus” Nikes, featuring holy water from the River Jordan. Nike would later sue MSCHF, leading to the company offering a refund to anyone who returned the shoes as part of the settlement with the sneaker giant.
Viral Trends
Beside the Big Red Boots, MSCHF has had other big viral hits. It dropped an app featuring investment advice based on one’s own astrological sign. Another hit was the development of a browser extension which allowed users to slyly watch Netflix at work. It collaborates with other content creators, partnering with popular YouTuber Mr. Beast, to create an app to sell 2,755 Lamborghinis for $35—the catch being the car can vary from a toy model, a remote controlled car, a kid size car and—for only one purchaser— an actual functioning Lamborghini.
