Rare Footage of Tinker Hatfield Shows Him Explaining Why Being a Hypebeast Is Important

Tinker Hatfield talks on sneaker culture over a decade ago.

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There's something about being "first" when doing anything. People leave the comment "first" on Instagram posts, and there's a constant struggle to get sneakers before everyone else. At times, this behavior can be labeled as grade-A hypebeast-ing and has fueled people to line up in queue — online and IRL — to get whatever's releasing next. Tinker Hatfield understands this world all too well, and he should: He's designed a bulk of the footwear that's elicited such reactions in the past. In a rare 2004 Dutch documentary, titled Sneakers, he speaks on this topic.

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The film was recently unearthed by sneaker writer Gary Warnett on his personal blog. In one part of Sneakers, Tinker says, "It's all about, I think, being the first one to buy the shoe. What we see in many different market places around the world, different cities, when a new special shoe is being introduced it is very important to be the first to buy that shoe and be the first to wear it. I think that communicates to everyone else your hipness, but also your individuality that you knew what shoe was coming out first and knew where to get it. And you weren't afraid to wear it. That expresses individuality."

Given that Tinker said this over a decade ago when sneaker hype was still relatively new, at least in its modern form, it's clear that he was predicting the future. But the bigger takeaway from his thoughts is that it's important to wear something different and influence others through your own actions, not just following the crowd.