Huntley High School grad already a successful businessman

Saturday is a big day for Parker Schuring.

The 18-year-old graduates from Huntley High School and soon will be off to Northern Illinois University to study business and play baseball on a scholarship.

But Schuring, of Lakewood, likely could teach some of his NIU professors a few things about starting a successful business. He’s been running SnkrFest Chicago for the past few years, attracting sneaker enthusiasts and vendors from around the world to events where people buy and sell collectible athletic shoes.

More than 6,000 people paid between $30 and $45 to attend his most recent SnkrFest on May 7 at the Schaumburg Convention Center. There were more than 300 vendors, and Monster Energy drink and StockX, which authenticates collectible shoes, sponsored the event.

This is big-time stuff in the sneaker industry.

“Collectors want heat on their feet,” Schuring said of the growing hobby.

He said some shoes, such as Nike Air Mags, can sell for $100,000. Another sought-after model is the $40,000 to $50,000 self-lacing sneaker Marty McFly wore in the “Back to the Future” movie series.

With some prices hitting five figures, security at SnkrFests is a top priority, Schuring said.

“In Schaumburg, we have a detail, and police cars are always making the rounds of the parking lot. And we have metal detectors,” he said.

Schuring got hooked on the hobby when he was 12. He and his cousins, Grant and Brandon Helbig, would line up at Foot Locker stores around the region to scoop up as many first-edition pairs of the most popular sneaker releases. They got to know the store managers to get intel on what was going to be released and when, and then there they were, waiting in line for the stores’ doors to open.

They were looking for the most popular sizes, men’s 9.5 to 10.5. But they also learned to corner the market on sizes 7 and 8 and 14 and 15 because the manufacturers don’t make a lot of them, meaning they’re more rare.

Collecting soon turned into a business for Schuring. He got the idea of bringing people together and hosted his first show in 2018 in a gymnasium that attracted about 150 attendees and about 20 vendors. He was 13.

We are a proud father and mother. He’s always hustling – mornings, afternoons and nights – planning these events and working hard.”

—  Parker Schuring's father, Tim Schuring

The shows continued to grow throughout the suburbs. Last fall, he hosted a show in Detroit.

“It’s a lot of work leading up to the events, doing advertising, security, customer service and other planning,” Schuring said. “Then there is all the work that happens the day of the event. This is on top of school work and baseball. That’s a lot to focus on.

“But I love getting the community together for this hobby. We’re all here for the same reason. It’s fun, and you see people from kids to 70-year-olds.”

His parents, Tim and Joanne Schuring, are shocked at Snkrfest’s success. They, along with his sister Carly, a student at the University of Iowa, help at events.

“We’ve been overwhelmed,” Tim said. “He has built this into a successful business. We are a proud father and mother. He’s always hustling – mornings, afternoons and nights – planning these events and working hard. He’s very busy. We help out, and we go to all of the baseball games he plays in.”

Parker Schuring said SnkrFest Chicago will be his career. He will continue to run shows during college and plans to branch out to larger cities, such as Las Vegas and New York.

• Dennis Anderson, vice president of news and content development for Shaw Media, lives in Crystal Lake. He’s looking to share news about you and your neighbors and special events and happenings. Share your Community Exchange news with him at danderson@shawmedia.com.