Zadeh Kicks is a Eugene, Oregon-based shoe company started by Michael Malekzadeh that promises early release of high-end shoes to would-be buyers before other competitors. However, on August 3, 2022, it was revealed that Zadeh Kicks had been a scam operation the entire time, not fulfilling deliveries and stealing millions of dollars from consumers. As Bloomberg reports, Malekzadeh is currently being investigated by federal authorities for a series of fraud charges. 

Many day-traders and would-be sneaker enthusiasts got into the business of flipping shoes. Flipping basically means buying a product or commodity with the intent of reselling it at a higher price. This is where Malekzadeh comes into the story. See, Malekzadeh’s idea was to procure popular shoes at low prices well before their widespread release and sell them for an enormous profit. But something else happened instead. Malekzadeh accepted thousands of orders for sneakers but had no intention of fulfilling any of them. He would instead take the money and run with it (via Complex). 

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