How an online shop tricked the reseller bots
The bots of the big players are buying limited special editions from small retailers. This not only overloads their servers, but also damages the industry. Until the Bonkers sneaker shop gives them the middle finger.
Resellers are snapping up masses of limited-edition goods from online shops by using bots. These bots buy all the items within fractions of a second so that they can then sell them on themselves at a huge profit. The whole thing is not only bad for business, but also regularly pushes the servers of small businesses to their limits. Martin Schreiber, Managing Director of Bonkers, a sneaker shop from Frankfurt, was fed up and fought back in his own unique way.
One size too big
Every time Bonkers offers a new, rare sneaker online in a very limited quantity, the page receives over 700,000 hits per minute. The highly coveted shoes are usually only available to buy in small, double-digit product quantities - rarely more than 70 or 80 pairs.
The bots that potential resellers unleash on small shops to buy up special editions and later sell them at a profit in their own shops are to blame. These bots overload the servers, lead to overselling as the system cannot process so many orders at once correctly, and annoy serious customers, who often go away empty-handed when limited edition products are launched.
Having fallen for the scam
Schreiber no longer wanted to stand by and watch the hustle and bustle and considered appropriate countermeasures. Inspired by dodgy Facebook adverts for e-books, he had a brilliant idea: instead of selling shoes, he sold digital images of shoes. He not only wanted to put an end to the bots, but also show that even small businesses can fight back against the big online retailers.
For example, at the launch of the Nike SB x Parra, the CEO of Bonkers created 3,000 copies of each shoe in each size. However, he did not offer the shoe, but seven product images of it for ten euros each. He clearly labelled this both in the title and in the product description. He also informed Nike and his "real" customers about the promotion.
Always one step ahead
Despite advance notice via social media, official information to Nike and communication to regular customers, the bots fell into the trap one after the other. In an interview with the sneaker magazine Solo, Scheiber did not want to reveal how many pictures of shoes he had sold. However, he did say that a single wholesaler, for example, bought 100 sets of images at 70 euros each for a total of 7,000 euros.
Reactions were divided: Schreiber experienced everything from wild insults to Paypal reclaims to thunderous applause. Paypal, for example, did not comply with the demands for refunds as Schreiber did everything right and the products were clearly labelled as images of shoes and not as shoes. The sneaker scene also celebrated Bonkers' action. While big brands such as Supreme and Nike are regularly hit by bots, a small online shop from Frankfurt is giving the resellers a run for their money.
With this campaign, Schreiber has not only pulled off a coup against the big resellers, but also a lucrative PR stunt. It remains to be seen whether other shops will jump on the bandwagon. However, it is also easy to adapt bots accordingly - then the cat-and-mouse game starts all over again.
When I'm not stuffing my face with sweets, you'll catch me running around in the gym hall. I’m a passionate floorball player and coach. On rainy days, I tinker with my homebuilt PCs, robots or other gadgets. Music is always my trusted companion. I also enjoy tackling hilly terrain on my road bike and criss-crossing the country on my cross-country skis.