Resellers and those looking to abuse the system to profit from sneakers have been a part of the game for decades. From those backdooring pairs from retailers to those “looping” and securing multiple pairs of the same SKU (many times with coupons and discount codes), retailers/footwear brands have begun to counter their efforts. We’ve seen this prominently with Nike as the sportswear giant updated its Terms & Conditions to combat bots and resellers, even banning an individual from purchasing Dunks from them. It seems that the fan-favorite retailer JD Sports (who also owns Finishline) is banning accounts for “suspected conduct inconsistent with the Terms and Conditions of the STATUS program.”
Like many big-name retailers, JD Sports/Finishline’s STATUS program allows consumers to earn points on purchases and redeem those points for coupons. Its most notable feature is the access to sneaker releases through the program. Select drops are offered on EA, meaning you to secure some of the most coveted releases without fighting for a pair on a FCFS drop (even if you sometimes have to wait in a long queue).
News of individuals having their STATUS accounts “deactivated” were first shared by Roszko, a prominent member of the online sneaker community. He told us, “JD/Finishline has the best rewards program for sneakerheads. If resellers are going to abuse it, then by all means, BAN THEM!”
Users Banned From JD Sports For "reselling"
We contacted some individuals who shared the news that their accounts were affected by this with a sneakerhead, Josh Skiffen, detailing their experience. Josh has purchased from JD Sports/Finishline for several years and signed up for a STATUS account in 2022. His purchase history indicates he was buying pairs regularly, though not enough activity to show he was gaming the system or reselling sneakers. “I have bought Panda Dunks three or so times, but never more than one pair at a time.”
However, he frequently purchased products from JD Sports/FNL online and in-store. When asked how often he bought products from the retailer, Josh stated, “Weekly if you averaged it out. Sometimes not for a few weeks. Sometimes I might make 2-3 purchases in a week.” He continued, “The only few times I doubled up on the same shoe was, for example, “Fire Red” Air Jordan 3s. I got in-store and pre-order EA (exclusive access). I also grabbed a few GS pairs as gifts for my nieces and nephews, two pairs in-store.”
Josh also clarified that he only used one account and had contacted customer support for help. As of this writing, his case remains unresolved, and his STATUS account remains deactivated.
Another sneakerhead we have spoken with and who resells regularly (they wish to remain anonymous) also received the same message as Josh on March 29th. This individual was the same person banned from purchasing Dunks from Nike and shared the image above. His account was multiple years old and was quite active as he was frequently buying products on release day through EA. On top of this, he bought plenty of Jordan 1 Mid and Jordan 1 Low colorways from the retailer.
This anonymous individual also stated, “I definitely purchased many different SKUs. But I know I cannot purchase the same skus with the same account. Those orders get canceled.” He is still dealing with customer support, who said his account “will be under review for 24-72 hours” but is still listed as a “reseller account.”
Finally, another sneakerhead who goes by the name Lost And Found Soles online has been purchasing products from the retailer for about three years. Over his history with JD/Finishline, LAFSoles purchased multiple pairs of the same SKUs even though he stated, “I had heard that you shouldn’t buy the same SKU more than twice, so I did try to keep this at a minimum.” One pair he had purchased multiple pairs of is the Nike Dunk Low “Panda.” He would also purchase around “3-4 times a week,” including in-store shopping around twice weekly.
On the morning of March 29th, 2023, he noticed he could not log in to his account and contacted customer service, who told him that his account “was under review for reselling.” LAFSoles added, “This is discouraging for an active customer who was trying to take advantage of tools I was provided. Most of my local trips were to keep my account active/receive EA.”
He states that even though he had purchased multiple sizes, he wasn’t always reselling pairs. His local stores had plenty of pairs of “hype” sneakers that weren’t selling out, though when the Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG “True Blue” was released, he was told by employees in-store that he could no longer receive points for in-store purchases “under the assumption I was reselling.” Online customer support cleared this issue and allowed him to earn points from in-store shopping.
LAFSoles wanted to add, "There’s so many challenges when it comes to getting shoes for retail and dealing with issues like this do not make it any easier.” As of now, his account is still deactivated.
JD Sports/Finishline's Terms & Conditions For The STATUS Program
The opening paragraph of JD’s Terms and Conditions for the Status program states that “STATUS is intended for personal use only. Diverters, wholesalers and resellers are not eligible for STATUS membership.” Further in, the terms state, “Any suspected abuse of the STATUS program, failure to follow any of these Terms and Conditions, membership inactivity (that is, no use of STATUS in any 12 month period), illegal activity, fraud, misrepresentation or other conduct inconsistent with these Terms and Conditions and/or detrimental to us or our interests, including without limitation, any suspected illegal, fraudulent other unauthorized use of any aspect of the STATUS program, may result in the revocation of your membership and make you ineligible for further participation in STATUS.”
While this likely isn’t the first time individuals have had their STATUS account “deactivated,” it is odd that multiple accounts were all hit with the same messages on the same day and had varied purchasing histories. It seems that JD Sports/Finishline is taking the same route as Nike and is looking to stop individuals from gaming the system to benefit instead of purchasing sneakers for their personal use. Even though some of these individuals were resellers, those buying multiple pairs for family members were hit with this deactivation. We’ll keep you updated on the latest developments in this story, so keep it locked to our Twitter and the Sole Retriever mobile app.
Recap
- Some users have been getting banned from JD Sports/Finishline's STATUS rewards program for suspected reselling
- Of the three individuals we spoke with, all of them had purchased multiple pairs of the same SKU, though one customer's purchase history doesn't appear to indicate they were buying with the intent to resell
- JD Sports/Finishline may begin to crack down even more on accounts that are suspected with reselling. What exactly could flag your account is a mystery. Some possible indicators would be purchasing multiple pairs of the same SKU and frequently purchasing different shoes in various sizes.
Sneakerhead from South Florida who turned his passion into a career. Concerts, music, trying new restaurants, and catching the latest movies are some of the things I enjoy when not writing for Sole Retriever. Email: nick@soleretriever.com
