Meet the Bucks County ‘degenerate collector’ who paid $9,000 for Trump sneakers — and says they’re worth more

Roman Sharf is a collector. His most recent addition to his conglomeration? A $9,000 pair of sneakers autographed by former President Donald Trump.

The golden high tops, which have an American flag on the ankle and the letter “T” in the center, are titled “Never Surrender.” The image of the shoes went viral after Trump unveiled them at Sneaker Con in Philadelphia in mid-February. Sharf, who lives in Doylestown, bid on his pair at the sneakerhead convention.

The Bucks County businessman said he believed the sneakers to be worth $10,000 before he began bidding. Shortly after the auction, he was offered $12,000 for them. He has since been offered $25,000, he said.

“People are telling me they’re worth 100 grand,” said Sharf, 48. “But the reality of the situation is they are worth zero until I decide to sell them. And for now, they’re being displayed in my office alongside with a hat that Donald Trump signed for me, and the marker that he signed it with. And it’s a story to tell.”

Four days after winning the signed shoes, Sharf and his son, who sells sneakers, traveled to Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Fla., for lunch with the former president. They discussed golf and sneakers. Trump ordered a burger and fries with a Coke, Sharf said.

“I felt the presence of a boss,” said Sharf, who supports Trump. “… But yet, not for a second did I feel belittled, or as if I didn’t belong.”

» READ MORE: Trump unveiled his line of gold sneakers at Sneaker Con in Philadelphia

Sharf runs a self-described gray market luxury watch dealing company called Luxury Bazaar. That means he trades luxury watches “without being authorized by the brand to do so on their behalf,” and his company makes more than $150 million a year while doing it, according to his YouTube channel. Luxury Bazaar has offices in Southampton, Bucks County, and in Hong Kong.

In addition to the sneakers, Sharf’s Southampton office houses a Formula One race car, vintage weapons, including a Chinese hand cannon from 1600, Muhammad Ali memorabilia, helmets, and old cassette tapes.

“I’m a collector by nature,” he said. “I sometimes like to refer to myself as a degenerate collector because sometimes I overbuy stuff.”

While he’s not currently planning on selling his Trump sneakers, thinking about the resale value helps justify purchases of this sort to his wife, he joked.

“Going into buying those sneakers, in the back of my head I’m saying OK, this thing is gonna be money in the bank, these sneakers are going to be worth a fortune,” he said. “Now, whether I’m going to sell them or not is irrelevant, because nine out of 10 times collectors don’t end up selling stuff. We tend to hoard things.”

He said that if he were to sell his Trump sneakers, he would donate the money to a charitable cause, such as his own organization called Watches for Good — which he said has raised money for Ukraine and other initiatives — or the American Cancer Society.

» READ MORE: Trump’s sneakers sold out, but are they landing with sneakerheads? Not really.

“But the collector in me is, like, ‘I can’t sell them,’” he said. “I can’t. I mean, like, look at this. This is, like, the most famous pair of shoes. Well, at the moment anyway. Right? And I have a hat to match.

“It’s a tough call,” he added.

On the day of the convention, Sharf posted a photo on Instagram of his new sneakers and tagged Trump.

In a video he posted two days later, he said he wasn’t trying to make a political statement by purchasing the shoes. But when his winning bid entered the public eye, people started messaging him saying they would no longer do business with him because he’s a Trump supporter, he said.

In the media frenzy over the shoes, some outlets called him a “Russian oligarch.” But Sharf said he was actually born in Ukraine, which was part of the Soviet Union when he immigrated to the United States at age 13.

“I thought that people had done business with Luxury Bazaar because we’ve been in business for 21 years, because of trust, because of personalized customer service that we provide, and great pricing, but I guess I was wrong,” he said in the video.

“You want to hate me for wanting this country to be great again? Go ahead and judge a sneakerhead,” he added, before reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

Sharf, a Republican, said he values freedom of speech, faith, and what he calls “family values” when it comes to politics. “To me, it’s family, God, country,” said Sharf, an Army veteran. “I’m a patriot of this country.”

He said he doesn’t support Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

Trump has repeatedly praised Putin going back to his 2016 campaign. In mid-February, Trump voiced opposition to aid to Ukraine and also said he would encourage Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to NATO members who don’t meet defense spending guidelines.

When asked about Trump’s praise for Putin, Sharf said he believed that there is more going on behind the scenes than the public is aware of, and that Trump would be able to end the war if he won the 2024 election.

The sneakerhead said he typically keeps politics off of his social media, where he shows luxury watch content. But there have been exceptions, such as when he posted about supporting police after the outcry following the murder of George Floyd and when he raised money in support of Ukraine, he said.

And now there is the video about the Trump high tops, in which he explains that he’s a Republican and responds to being labeled a Russian oligarch.

“This wasn’t planned,” he said. “This was literally me going out buying a pair of sneakers, and the world went haywire.”