“It was cold and raining and it was like 11 p.m.”

JC Flores has gained a lot from his job. That includes many, many stories.

“This [buyer] had been bugging me since the day before, like he really wanted this pair,” JC said. “So he shows  up, and I walk over to him. He didn’t get out of his car and that should have been a red flag. We do an even exchange with the money and the shoes. I open the wad of cash to see that half of it was fake.”

When JC started selling shoes in ninth grade, he couldn’t have imagined what would come with it. What started as a side hustle slowly became a big part of his life. Month by month, JC buys and resells hundreds of shoes, bringing in thousands of dollars. 

“I will either buy shoes off of people or stores and I pay retail most of the time,” JC said. “After I buy it, it’ll come in or I’ll go pick it up. Then I’ll sell them myself at the after-market value, which is based on supply and demand. If a shoe’s really limited then I can sell it for more. I’m just kind of scalping shoes.”

To find customers, JC relies on social media. He uses many different sites and takes a personalized approach to where he posts different shoes.

“[To find buyers] I just post a lot everywhere – Facebook, Offroad, Snapchat, Instagram. Then I’ll have a target demographic depending on which shoe it is. So maybe if it’s like a certain shoe, I’ll try to sell to a person I know who might like that shoe. 

As part of the job, JC travels to sneaker events, sometimes internationally. His parents, who he says are supportive of his business, often travel with him.

“Recently, I was in Salt Lake City,” JC said. “That one, I got flown out for. It’s first class, so it’s pretty amazing. They’re fun, you know. I get to meet a lot of new people, I’m selling shoes and I’m making money. It’s fun.”

In his line of work, it’s important to be personable. He says that it’s creating these connections that helps his business grow.

“I’d say that whenever you’re starting out, connections are worth more than anything. Don’t ruin a connection you have with another seller or a customer over like five or ten dollars. But also don’t be a sellout and only sell to one person, because then you’re not going to meet anyone and you’re not gonna grow.”

He’s met a lot of interesting people in the process, including rappers and actors. At the height of Euphoria popularity, he even met Javon Walton, the actor who portrayed Ashtray.

“It was at a sneaker event in San Antonio. I’m with some of my friends and out of nowhere we just see this pack of 16 year old girls and they were screaming, and we’re all confused about what was going on. Then we see these really big guys, and we’re like ‘oh it’s probably one of them. Maybe one of them is a boxer or something.’ And then we see this little kid in between all of these huge bodyguards.”

“[I’ve also met] a couple of low-level rappers, just Austin people,” JC said. “They have like 350 thousand followers on instagram, but they’re not famous, famous. There’s Quinn, Blockboy, and I almost met Jack Harlow. I was talking to his manager and then it never worked out.”

Especially after the incident with the fake money, JC recognizes the risk that comes with selling shoes to strangers.

“I try not to show my face too much because I’ve been robbed before. They’re like ‘oh it’s a little kid. He’s 5’6”, let’s get him.’ I don’t want to make a target of myself. Sometimes I’m a little sketched out by it, but most of the time it’s really cool people wanting to buy shoes.”