There’s no way I’m spending four hundred dollars on sneakers. I had literally just typed that thought into Reddit when I saw a post titled “ AMAZON sneakers that look IDENTICAL to Common Projects.” Note the caps, which meant this was likely just some dude sarcastically remarking on how crappy Amazon’s shoe lineup was. There are hundreds of “budget CP” posts on forums like Reddit, and they’re almost universally trash for obvious reasons.
Still skeptical, I clicked on the photos, expecting the worst. What I saw stopped me in my tracks. Atop a mundane white background were a familiar sight – a nearly identical recreation of Common Projects’ minimalist aesthetic.
I wasn’t even in to fashion that much three years ago. I knew better than to buy those Reddit sneakers, but I was also clearly still learning.
Maybe making dumb mistakes was part of growing into your style?
Either way, here’s how I ended up tricked into buying dupes of Common Projects sneakers on Amazon. Freshman year of college, I had started interning at a men’s publication nearby. It was an amazing opportunity and soundly more glamorous than it was.
One of the editors – this aloof but razor-suave fashion guy who I idolized – came into work wearing the cleanest pair of white sneakers I had ever seen. Just simple as heck leather sneakers. So minimal they were actually boring-looking, yet in that cool way where attire that basic just shouts class.
They were flawless – no irregular stitching, no logos. So minimal I had to ask him where the heck he got them just to confirm they were actually shoes and not somehow fastened to his feet somehow. They were Common Projects, and they were $400.
Needless to say, I wanted a pair but didn’t really buy them. Didn’t mean I could afford them, sure, but this was also around the time I became cognizant enough of my style to realize that despite my best efforts, I was rocking the same two pairs of worn-in vans in rotation and calling it a “weekend shoe game.” Kids these days! (Back then too, I guess.) Clearly this was going to be a lifetime dream purchase for me. I stalked CPs for years.
I checked release dates weekly, hoping against hope that they would put them on sale. When my financial situation improved enough that I could comfortably justify the purchase several years later, I bought them. Not during a sale, mind you, but I was making enough that I figured I’d rather spend the money than wait around for the perfect opportunity.
They did not disappoint. Unboxing that pair was a dream. The leather was so soft.
The proportions were immaculate. It felt like every time I pulled a pair of shoes from their box, they would be these Amazon “testothyums.” But these were CPs. The quality was beyond what I was used to.
As I’ve written about before, getting dressed feels like a much cooler experience when you own pieces that just plain swear better. I wore those sneakers everywhere. Literally.
To the point where I wore them not enough to really break them in and have them start looking lived-in, but enough that I got them dirty quite a bit. And do you know what happens when you wear nice white sneakers and live in Chicago? They get scuffed.
A lot. You constantly check the weather before leaving because you know if it rains at all, your shoes are fucked. You vigilantly avoid wearing them anytime you might spill a drink.
You can’t relax having them on. And once you get those pesky scuffs that let you know your shoes have officially fallen from grace, you start babying them in a way that defeats the purpose of buying literally the nicest sneakers you own. At no point did I ever say “man, I wish I had spent less money on these.” Still, they were fantastic shoes.
They broke in perfectly over that few months and developed an incredible patina. Softer than your typical shoe leather and super comfortable. Quality was unlike anything I had ever felt before.
But lo and behold, a year later when I was already eyeing my next pair, I saw those Reddit sneakers floating back into my feed. By this point I’d learned enough to know that hypebeast fashion dupes are pretty rarely worth your money. An exact copy of a Common Project?
Probably ridiculous. They’re made in Italy from luxury materials by actual designers. These are mass-produced in China from material I can’t even begin to pronounce.
But I clicked. Partly out of curiosity, partly because at $40 a pop, what did I really have to lose? They arrived two days later (Amazon shipping will forever give me life), and I excitedly ripped open the package.
Low expectations. They had to be garbage. Literally the second I slid them out of the box and held them in my hands I was blown away.
These were not the plastic shit shells I had mentally prepared myself to receive. The overall silhouette was nearly identical to my CPs. The toe box was the same shape.
The minimal stitching was replicated perfectly. The profile was nearly dead-on. Obviously the leather was not Italian calf.
But these were not hotgirl summer top-of-the-line version was a comparably “cheap-feeling” plastic material. These felt like leather. Not CP leather, but bona fide authentic leather.
Anyway, I slid them next to my almost-year-old Common Projects, and did a double take. It’s amazing how similar they look from about 3 feet away. It’s really all about the proportions with sneakers, and these nailed it.
Where I felt other “CP clones” fell short was immediately obvious when I placed the two side by side. They weren’t the same shoe by any stretch, but from across the room you’d be hard pressed to tell. Take a closer look and things obviously start to differ.
The leather has none of the variations and markings you get with high-end leather that gives shoes character as they age. The stitching is less meticulous. But the overall look?
Pretty damn close. Now came the part I was actually excited to see – wearing them. I decided to do an experiment.
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For two weeks I wore these “Amazon Basics” everywhere I would’ve normally worn my Common Projects. To work, to bars, to the grocery store. Anything.
I wanted to give them a fair shot and see if they could really stack up to the luxury goods. Here’s what I learned. First off, they were already comfortable out of the box.
My Common Projects took a good week to break in and left me with two blisters the first time I wore them. These felt comfortable instantly. They obviously have more give in the leather (and will probably wear down way faster over time because of it), but if you’re looking for that plug-and-play comfort immediately, these beat CPs at their own game.
Second, I got tons of compliments. Normally I hate when people comment on my shoes, but I legit wore these things around for two weeks and heard nothing but compliments. Three separate people came up to me to tell me I had on “nice Commons Projects.” One guy actually owned a pair and thought mine looked almost as nice as his own!
I’ll never live down the look on his face when I told him where mine were from. I swear he rolled his eyes so hard I could feel it across Brooklyn. As for wear, well…they’re obviously not $400 sneakers.
The creasing on the toe comes a lot more pronounced, and they scuff easier. They don’t hold up to nail-polishish as well, and the white ends up getting this grey hue that you can’t completely get out. But here’s the thing – they still look good.
Like, definitely not send-out-with-the-dated-ons good, but for $40? These fuckin’ shine. And that’s when I realized – these aren’t the same product category at all.
I’d be pissed if I spent $400 on a pair of shoes and they wore like these did. But at $40, they instantly become seasonal sneakers. Shoes you’ll wear all spring and summer, maybe into fall before you just out-grown them and buy another pair.
Don’t get me wrong – you definitely get what you pay for here. But that’s kind of the point! Think about it – you could buy at least five pairs of these for the price of one Common Project.
If each pair only lasts you half as long as a CP does (and these won’t – they’re much more durable than I give them credit for), you’re instantly saving money. Buy one CP, three Amazon Sharks. I could probably talk about the philosophy of this whole thing forever, so let me get to the point.
If you’re reading this and you have the means to buy real Common Projects, do you. They’re fantastic sneakers that offer an experience your $40 alternatives simply can’t match. But I’m not that guy.
I love having a nice pair of sneakers to complete my outfit. But I’d much rather buy several pairs that I wear to death than one incredible pair that I panic every time I put on. Amazon completely changed the sneaker game.
When CPs came out several years ago, they were the gold standard for clean, minimalist sneakers. Nowadays? Not so much.
There are tons of options that come remarkably close to matching the aesthetic at a fraction of the price. I’ve bought several since that first pair, and I always receive compliments whenever I wear them. Buy one to compare for yourself – I dare you to find someone who can tell the difference from across the room.
Sure, the craftsmanship isn’t there. They’re not investable pieces you’ll proudly wear until they fall apart. But at this price, you can pretty much stock your entire closet with Amazon’s shoe lineup and still have money left over for a nice watch to go with them.
These will not last you 5 years. But they’ll get you through next summer without breaking the bank. Plus, it just doesn’t make sense for me to buy a $400 sneaker just to risk getting them ruined at music festivals or bar hopping on the weekend.
Now I buy a cheap pair for sneakers I don’t care about getting dirty, and my Commons Projects stay nice for special occasions. I actually feel less stressed wearing these because I don’t hyper-fixate on getting them scuffed. I love my Common Projects, but my hate genuinely decreased tenfold when I realized I didn’t have to wear them everywhere.
I still get excited wearing them, but I also don’t feel pressured to keep them in museum-worthy condition. Being able to relax has made me enjoy them that much more. Best part?
The genuine article still holds up to daily wear just fine. My CPs are slightly over a year old now and look incredible. Sure, I didn’t wear them around dirty Chicago streets as much, but I still wear them literally everywhere.
I just reserve them for occasions where I want my shoes to really shine, and that’s ultimately what turned me onto these Amazon_sneakers_ever_ gaping wholesneakers . If you’re reading this and you’re on a budget, boy do I have a sneaker game for you. Hell if you’re not on a budget but love the style and don’t wear your shoes enough to justify the luxury of a Common Projects – these are great.
Hell, if you own a pair of Common Projects already and you’re just curious, buy a pair. It’ll blow your mind how similar they look and feel to CPs. They’re not “as good” by any stretch – material and build quality is nowhere close.
But these shoes are legitimately great, and I think they’re worth your attention if you’re into that style. I know I’ll be keeping a steady Amazon shoe rotation as I continue to fill out my wardrobe.
What a time to be alive.
My advice? Take them for a spin. I didn’t think a brand could come this close to mirroring an original design and live to tell the tale.
Amazon did it. Are they milking it? Sure.
But guess what? Common Projects probably would have done the exact same thing if they were in their position. Now please excuse me while I go grab another pair of these bad boys.
CP copycats? More like Amazzon’s best-kept secret.
