But not everything from Supreme is gonna end up being valuable. Similarly, the teal box-logo sweatshirt worn by Tyler, the Creator in his 'She' music video, originally priced at around $150, sold for $3,500. After the photos were released, the resale price of the shoes doubled to $800. In July 2007, West was pictured wearing the shoes at the Grammy Foundation's Starry Night party. The shoes retailed for around $150, with resale prices ranging from $300 to $400. In 2006, Supreme released their Supreme Blazer SB, a collaboration with Nike. This success was partly due to what's been dubbed the 'Kanye effect.' It was around the mid to late 2000s that Supreme really started to pick up speed. Narrator: Supreme only sells their merchandise at 11 brick-and-mortar stores across the world as well as their online store. A lot of the people who do stand in line are standing in line for someone else. So if I want it in black and red, I need to get two other people to get it for me, so they need to stand in line for me. There's a one-limit-per-style rule in Supreme, so what that means is, if a shirt comes out in black, red, and gray, you can only get it in gray. And on Thursday, you go to the store at the time that you're given. Then on Wednesday, they'll send you a text telling you the time and store to report to. Then, they'll send you a text later in the day to let you know if you've been selected to stand in line. But the items are also purposefully difficult to get ahold of, and their products are kept in high demand by very limited releases.Ĭhris Magnaye: Tuesday at 11:00 a.m., you go to the Supreme website, you enter your basic information: your name, email, phone number, and credit-card number.

Narrator: The recognizability is key to Supreme's power as a brand.

With Supreme, there's no element of status, and they went completely for what a logo should be all about: standing out, being identifiable. And the company's use of often unlicensed imagery has led to Supreme being served cease-and-desist letters from Louis Vuitton, the NHL, and the NCAA.ĭimitrios Tsivrikos: The more we've been exposed to a brand, the more likely we are gonna be developing an association, a familiarity, almost a sense of connection with it. Supreme's first branded T-shirt was simply a photo of Robert De Niro in the film 'Taxi Driver' along with the iconic red-and-white logo. Pop-cultural imagery and logos are copied and adapted in a way that makes the designs feel more like contemporary art or graffiti than a big fashion brand. Supreme's appropriation of images is one of the keys to its popularity. This design so closely echoes the work of conceptual artist Barbara Kruger that it is hard not to see it as a direct copy, and copyright theft is something that's in Supreme's DNA. The most iconic Supreme design is their box logo, originally, simple white, italic lettering over a plain red background.

But Supreme's limited releases and attitude has pushed them far beyond their beginnings. Throughout the '90s and early 2000s, Supreme functioned as a skate brand catering to both skaters and those interested in the emerging streetwear style. The store started out selling hoodies and sweatshirts aimed towards the burgeoning New York skate scene. Founded by James Jebbia in 1994, Supreme started as a skateboarding store in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan. Since its origin, Supreme has maintained an image of being authentic. It's often an obsession and an entire subculture of its own. But for its fans, Supreme is more than just a brand. So why would someone pay nearly a thousand dollars more for basically the same jacket? And what is it that makes Supreme so expensive?įrom the eye-catching logo to the limited product releases and artist collaborations, over the past 20 years, Supreme has transitioned from a small skateboarding store in New York to a $1 billion streetwear company. This one just happens to be a North Face collaboration with Supreme. The one on the right is currently selling for nearly $1,300. Narrator: These two jackets are nearly identical, both made by The North Face, and both using Gore-Tex technology. Shopper 3: People want to know, 'Hey, look, that guy's wearing Supreme.' But people also make a living off it too, so. Shopper 2: I just bought a faux-fur jacket for $1,000, so. Account icon An icon in the shape of a person's head and shoulders.

Unique hype supreme