Steve Jobs’ Birkenstocks : sold at 200,000 euros, these grandmother’s sandals are the most expensive in the world!

Ultra comfortable and trendy, Birkenstocks continue to be spotted on the feet of the trendiest girls. The size advantage? They are durable and affordable. So why did this pair of German sandals sell for almost 200,000 euros in 2022?

Who could have predicted that orthopedic sandals would become a real fashion phenomenon? Birkenstocks have proven time and time again that in addition to being comfortable they are downright stylish. The most popular pair among it-girls? Boston clogs and their super cozy look. Depending on the model, Birkenstocks cost between 70 and 150 euros. How to justify when a pair recently sold for almost 200,000 euros? The answer: it’s not just any pair of Birks!

Steve Jobs‘ Birkenstocks sold at an exorbitant price
It needed a star to justify such a price. In November 2022, auction house Julien’s Auctions put up for sale a pair of Birkenstocks that once belonged to Apple creator Steve Jobs. Died in 2011, the entrepreneur is still one of those fascinating personalities. But from there to buy his old sandals, we are skeptical. Yet an anonymous buyer snagged the pair at the 2022 auction. It’s the Arizona model in brown, a best-seller for 50 years, and the least we can say is that they have been worn more than once. Tired straps, footprints, worn soles… these Birkenstocks were sold for the modest sum of 199,826 euros, or 218,750 US dollars. They had however been estimated between 60,000 and 80,000 dollars. Steve Jobs would have worn them in the 1970s and 1980s, decades during which the CEO created Apple.

Birkenstock: a brand that often makes the buzz

Steve Jobs’ Arizona pair aren’t the only Birkenstock sandals to break price records. The German brand is so successful that it inspires artists to create around its concept. One of the latest models to rock fashion? Birkinstock! And no, that’s not a typing error. Resulting from the contraction between Birkenstock and Birkin, it is a pair dating from 2021 and made of leather scraps from Hermès bags, the luxury house. The project was spearheaded by art collective MSCJF and the pairs sold for between $34,000 and $76,000. When they came out, the Birkinstocks particularly made Kylie Jenner crack.