5 major ways the coronavirus outbreak is affecting the sneaker resale market, according to high-level resellers and the founder of Sneaker Con

Justin Gmoser/Business Insider

Sneaker Con is one of the most popular sneaker events in the country.

• China is a crucial player in the sneaker resale market, which is currently experiencing disruption from the coronavirus outbreak.
• Business Insider spoke to two high-level sneaker resellers and the organizer of Sneaker Con about the impact of the coronavirus on the sneaker resale industry.
• One sneaker reseller who said he made $350,000 in sales last year said he has been seeing a significant drop in sales to Chinese buyers.
• From a slowdown in fake sneaker production to a drop in sales to China, here are the top five ways that the coronavirus is impacting the $2 billion sneaker resale market.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The sneaker resale industry is projected to hit $6 billion by 2025. But even this booming market is facing headwinds from the coronavirus outbreak, which has infected more than 111,000 people worldwide, with most cases in China.

China is a huge player in the worldwide sneaker market. Buyers and resellers in China make up a crucial segment of the worldwide sneaker resale industry.

"China will soon become the sneaker capital of the world," Henek Lo, general manager of GOAT China, told Bloomberg in an October report about the Chinese sneaker industry, adding that the sneaker demand from Chinese millennials is especially unique. According a Vogue report, over 20,000 people visited Sneaker Con, the world's largest sneaker gathering, in Shanghai last May.

Though the coronavirus has spread worldwide, the vast majority of cases, nearly 80%, are in China.

Business Insider spoke to two high-level sneaker resellers and the organizer of Sneaker Con about the impact of the coronavirus on the sneaker resale industry.

From a slowdown in fake sneaker production to a drop in sales to China, here are the top five ways that the coronavirus is impacting the $2 billion sneaker resale market: