A Wild 47 Days... Thank You
What 47 days of writing full-time taught me about this community
I need to start by saying something I don’t say enough... thank you.
Not the casual, throwaway kind of thank you. I mean it. The kind that comes from realizing people actually care about what you’re building when you’re not entirely sure it matters.
On November 13th, I made a decision. I needed to get back to writing. This year has been... a lot. The kind of year where you question everything, where the path forward feels unclear, where you’re just trying to keep your head above water. Writing always helps me process that stuff. Clears my head. Makes things make sense again.
A few days later, I committed publicly to writing full-time on Substack in 2026.
Since then, 47 days have passed.
In those 47 days:
210+ new free subscribers joined
51 people decided this was worth paying for (up from 1)
Nearly 20,000 views on Substack
Consistent publishing schedule for the first time in years
Now, that’s not enough money to sustain full-time writing. Not even close. But it’s heading in the right direction. And the only reason it’s heading anywhere at all is because of the people reading this right now.
What These 47 Days Taught Me
I forgot how much I missed this.
Not the metrics or the subscriber counts. I mean the actual work. Researching Nike’s layoff cycles and digging into how they lost a trademark because institutional knowledge walked out the door. Writing about Cade Cunningham’s signature shoe deal and why Detroit always gets overlooked. Connecting NPR to sneakers through John Oliver’s gold adidas.
I’ve spent nearly 20 years in this industry building other people’s platforms. Eastbay’s first blog. Complex Sneakers. StockX as employee #9. Stadium Goods through acquisition. Every single time, I was building someone else’s thing.
Writing here? This is mine. And knowing that 51 of you value it enough to pay for it... that’s not something I take lightly.
Here’s what paying subscribers make possible:
Time to research deep dives instead of rushing through takes
Freedom to write stories that don’t fit the algorithm or a marketing budget
Ability to take on select consulting work while making writing the priority
Space to build something real, not just react to hype cycles
Without that support, this doesn’t work.
What’s Coming in 2026
I’ve got a publishing schedule locked in:
Tuesday: Industry analysis (free)
Thursday: “From the Vault” archive stories (paid)
Friday: Exclusive updates and bonus content (paid)
Sunday: 2,500+ word deep dives (paid)
Saturday: YouTube videos (Founding Members credited in every video)
Four posts per week. Every week. Plus weekly YouTube. Plus the podcast returning in Q1. Plus a big project I’ll be announcing in the new year. Plus an automotive apparel brand launching (yeah, that's happening).
I’m committed to showing up.
One Last Thing About Founding Member Pricing
If you’re reading this as a free subscriber and you’ve been waiting for the right moment... January 1st is the deadline.
After that, it’s $15/month for new subscribers.
Right now, you can lock in $7/month forever. That’s over 50% in savings. More importantly, you’re betting on something before it’s obvious. You’re supporting independent writing about sneakers and culture that doesn’t exist anywhere else.
And if you work in footwear, content, or marketing? This is easily expensed as industry research.
Thank You, For Real
To the 51 people who paid... you’re the reason I can even consider making this work.
To the 210+ who joined in the last 47 days... you’re proof that people still care about stories beyond the hype cycle.
To everyone who’s been here longer, reading for free, sharing posts, commenting, just showing up... you matter more than you know.
If that’s worth $7/month to you, now’s the time.
If not, the free posts aren’t going anywhere. I’ll still be here every Tuesday.
Either way, thank you for these 47 days. They reminded me why I started doing this in the first place.
Let’s see what the next 47 bring.
-Nick
P.S. - If you’re considering a group subscription (3+ people at 15% off), now’s the time. Gift subscriptions at Founding Member rates end January 1st. After that, everyone pays full price.
Congratulations on the earned early success, Nick. ✌🏽💙👟