The Ridiculous Amount Of Knock-Off Shoes American Pickers Bought For $45

Mike Wolfe of "American Pickers" loves anything and everything vintage. You can see the look of pure excitement on his face whenever he walks into a garage or storage shed and finds something he thought he'd never get the chance to lay eyes on. He's found some truly esoteric items over the years that go well beyond the usual selection of cars and road signs. In fact, there was one episode where Wolfe spent thousands of dollars to acquire a set of Pillsbury Doughboy models.

Wolfe has a special knack for finding the value in practically anything. What looks like junk to one person is treasure in his eyes, so items that most people would gloss over he scoops up right away. He's been doing this for a long time, so even though some purchases may confuse some viewers, you just have to trust the process. That was the case in one episode of "American Pickers," where Wolfe went all-in on a collection of knock-off shoes, which he was able to buy for the low, low price of $45. 

Mike Wolfe doesn't exactly come across as a major sneakerhead throughout much of "American Pickers," but he clearly knows his stuff and reveals how much knock-offs mean to him during Season 23's "Country Road Gold." In the episode, he talks about how growing up, his mother would have to buy him knock-off shoes since they couldn't afford the real McCoys. So when he comes across a general shop with boxes upon boxes of knock-offs, he's incredibly interested.

His only issue with the selection is the sizes. They're primarily baby-sized shoes, but he must still think he can sell them for a decent amount, as he ends up paying $3 per pair, spending $45 total to get his hands on 15 pairs of shoes. There's obviously a market for such shoes if the YouTube comment section is any indication. Plenty of people have fond memories of purchasing and wearing such shoes, including one person who wrote, "Those sneakers remind me of the sneakers Sears sold..Great Memories!"

It's not the first time Wolfe has taken a gander at some valuable shoes. All the way back in Season 13, he looked at some shoes that once belonged to a seven-foot man. Shoes may not come up all that often on the show, but it always makes for engaging television when they do pop up.