Cyril Roy Palmer’s connection with sneakers started almost as soon as he began skating 15 years ago. The Los Angeles native is a skater and musician who has since amassed some of the most sought-after kicks in his well-worn sneaker collection. “I was skating in crazy pairs of [Nike] Dunks that I had no idea would cost thousands of dollars now,” he tells Highsnobiety. “That’s just part of being a skater, you just skate — you’re not worried about the shoes as much.”
Over time, Palmer learned that certain kicks were just better equipped for skating and stunting, namely Nike’s insanely hyped Dunk SB series. “As I got older, I realized that SBs are cool to skate in and also cool to wear. It started to all make sense,” he says. He also let us know his secret for copping those grails through the years: “I’ve gotten a lot of heaters from eBay. I’ve been [a member] since 2009 — that’s a flex."
That’s why we invited Palmer to be part of our eBay Market Mentor series, where sneakerheads in our world give us their best advice for shopping authentic kicks on eBay. Watch our video above to learn more about his background and tips for hunting down your own sneaker grails, and stay tuned for our final edition featuring @ysabellecaps.
Pay attention to the seller’s rating
“I pay a lot of attention to the seller’s rating and see if it’s good, bad, or neutral. I look at the reviews and comments to check what other people are saying about their purchases and experiences with the seller. I try to steer clear of any shops with less than a 3-star rating. eBay’s Authenticity Guarantee will always hold it down though!”
Make sure the seller is responsive
“Usually when I’m buying something super expensive I want to make sure the seller is responding to me pretty quickly because I’m investing my money into those shoes.”
Play with the filters
“It’s important to me to filter my search for items that are inspected for authenticity so I can feel confident in my purchase. I like to do a filtered search for SBs, Jordan 1s, Converse, or New Balance.”
Browse eBay shops
“When browsing through eBay shops I look for people that sell similar items with similar styles and aesthetics so I’m not forced to look through stuff I don’t want to buy.”
Make sure sellers are legit
“I like to check their social media accounts to make sure they’re legitimate, have credibility, and are a legit seller.”
