If you happened to be around Deák Square and Károly Boulevard in Budapest last Saturday, you may have witnessed a pretty odd sight. Two separate events organised by Hungarian influencers drew hordes of teenagers to the popular downtown spots. From doling out free cash to selling limited-edition T-shirts, the scene was nothing short of extraordinary. Here is what went down in detail.
A shoe store for sneakerheads teams up with Hungarian influencers
The sidewalk in front of Balazs Kicks shoe store was buzzing with excitement as the massive crowd gathered to get their hands on limited-edition T-shirts and take part in a much-anticipated raffle, reports Telex. The store, as they write on their website, is “Hungary’s largest sneaker reseller, dealing in special, limited edition, 100% original sneakers.”
The store, run by 20-year-old Balázs Pachert, rose to fame after the young man’s stellar performance in the Hungarian version of Shark Tank. Since then, the store has boasted an annual turnover exceeding one billion forints, generated from the sales of rare and exclusive sneakers.
Pachert made headlines last year when a pair of Louis Vuitton Air Force shoes worth HUF 4.5 million (EUR 11,433) was stolen from his shop. Now, the limelight has once again found him, thanks to a collaborative limited-edition T-shirt campaign with a group of Hungarian influencers.
On 13 April, a slot machine was placed in the store, tempting customers with the promise of winning sneakers worth up to hundreds of thousands of forints for an entry fee of HUF 2,000 (EUR 5). Additionally, a streamer duo called 2okos, incredibly popular among young Hungarians, also launched a sale in the store.
These two Hungarian influencers, who set a national record in 2023 for the number of simultaneous viewers on Twitch, promoted their new merch by staging a daring “kidnapping” live on air—a stunt that even earned them a brief ban from the platform.
The abduction, of course, was only a marketing ploy, with the streamers’ “escape” announced in an action-packed short flick. They returned with the launch of a fresh, limited-edition T-shirt exclusively available at Balazs Kicks.
The crowd gathered to get their hands on the popular Hungarian influencers’ merch. Photo: PrtSc / Balazs Kicks Instagram
The lucky first ten customers snagged their t-shirts for free, prompting devoted fans—some of whom had camped out since Friday—to queue for long hours for a shot at the merchandise, priced at HUF 17,990 (EUR 45.71), according to Telex.
After a while, the queue swelled up so much that Deák Square had to be closed to traffic.
Free money: HUF 2 million (EUR 5,081) tossed from rooftop by phone case-influencers
At the same time as the shoe store event unfolded, just a few hundred meters away, another group of Hungarian influencers were firing up their fans. 444.hu reported on the bizarre scene as throngs of teenagers swarmed Deák Square.
The masterminds behind the event, best described as an unorthodox advertising ploy, opted for some rather unconventional business management practices. Here’s the lowdown: a Hungarian company selling phone cases, Mobilfox, allegedly fired its well-known advertising face, Roland Szépréthy, familiar to many—particularly youngsters—thanks to his viral TikTok videos.
Szépréthy then allegedly hijacked the company’s TikTok channel, demanding either a 25 percent ownership share in the company or HUF 100 million (EUR 253,562). He promised his followers that if his demands were met, he would rain down HUF 2 million (5,071) in HUF 1,000 banknotes (EUR 2.54) from the rooftop of Mobilfox’s office.
At the company’s Dalszínház Street headquarters, a huge crowd gathered on the day of the event, with teenagers ecstatically chasing the flying 1000-forint banknotes.
PrtSc: 444.hu / YouTube
PrtSc: 444.hu / YouTube
After piles of cash were thrown off the building, the founder of Mobilfox, Kevin Diller and Szépréthy, marched together to Deák Square and then back to the company premises, while repeatedly hurling banknotes into the crowd.
PrtSc: 444.hu / YouTubePrtSc: 444.hu / YouTube
“In the crowd, which could by no means be called safe, the children eagerly rushed after the flying banknotes until an unfortunate incident saw a young girl pass out. At that point, the bouncers quickly cordoned off a small area by pushing people away. Later, hundreds of thousands more were scattered by the influencers moving towards the middle of the square, amidst similar scenes of chaos,” reports 444.hu.
PrtSc: 444.hu / YouTube
PrtSc: 444.hu / YouTube
In an attempt to catch the stray bills, many climbed into the neighbouring construction site. Fortunately, no injuries were reported during the chaotic affair.
“Let them eat cake” – famous quote of Marie – Antoinette – but we know the FATE she meet /
Don’t THINK the current Finance Minister of the Orban – Fidesz Government of Hungary – Mihaly Varga, would or couldn’t do a similar re-enactment of the subject pertained in this article.
Couldn’t imagine from above the roof tops a DELUGE of forints being SHOWERED down on us the citizens of Hungary.
Could re-wind the filming image, to represent it being “sucked” back out of the hands of those grabbing, clasping them as they descend, back over the roof-tops into the hands of Mihaly Varga and all of the Orban – Fidesz Government, piling it into there “Gladstone Leather Bags” ready to do runners to there Banks or “other” institutions, maybe “hidden ” under there bedding mattress, to deposit it.
We factually KNOW the Orban Fidesz-Government certainly DON”T have any money whether alone in a position to Give or THROW it away.
Minister of Finance – Mihaly Varga and current Prime Minister of Hungary – Victor Mihaly. Orban – principal contributors to the saying :
“Let them eat cake.
No, lets FEED them higher taxes, and FEED us”.
Oh what FATE will they MEET.
“Let them eat cake” – famous quote of Marie – Antoinette – but we know the FATE she meet /
Don’t THINK the current Finance Minister of the Orban – Fidesz Government of Hungary – Mihaly Varga, would or couldn’t do a similar re-enactment of the subject pertained in this article.
Couldn’t imagine from above the roof tops a DELUGE of forints being SHOWERED down on us the citizens of Hungary.
Could re-wind the filming image, to represent it being “sucked” back out of the hands of those grabbing, clasping them as they descend, back over the roof-tops into the hands of Mihaly Varga and all of the Orban – Fidesz Government, piling it into there “Gladstone Leather Bags” ready to do runners to there Banks or “other” institutions, maybe “hidden ” under there bedding mattress, to deposit it.
We factually KNOW the Orban Fidesz-Government certainly DON”T have any money whether alone in a position to Give or THROW it away.
Minister of Finance – Mihaly Varga and current Prime Minister of Hungary – Victor Mihaly. Orban – principal contributors to the saying :
“Let them eat cake.
No, lets FEED them higher taxes, and FEED us”.
Oh what FATE will they MEET.