A Bathing Ape Takes Final Bath
In case you haven’t heard, news broke earlier this week that Hong Kong based company – I.T Ltd – purchased 90% (including the debut) of the Japanese brand – A Bathing Ape – for a mere $2.8 million. Neojaponisme wrote a great piece on the rise and fall of A Bathing Ape. We recommend that you read it. Like we said, you will have to READ it. You can read the article by clicking here.
After you read the article, share your thoughts in the comment section.
Category: Bapes, Footwear News, News
how do your t-shirts go for about 80 bucks, but your company only sold for 2 million lmao
well…sucks for them but i could really care less…never owned any of their stuff and never cared to.
Good Riddance!!!! BURN BABY, BURN!!!
stuff was seriously overpriced and was all about hype. id say im sad to see them go but that’d be a lie.
Never messed with Bape, too many people wore it.
bape was the shiz back a few years ago…it just died because it was truly overpriced. and was the same song over and over again. i can tell u though the batman bapes are my favorite bapes of all time and i would go for them. sad to see a brand once the top just die like that. i can see that happening to a certain other brand *ahem* supreme *ahem*
Cosign edizzle, supreme should be next
Even though I don’t like bape clothing, it is sad to see a company who was so deeply embedded in the hip hop culture go down the toilet. I think the saddest part is that in the end the value of the company (Bape) is less than Nigo’s LV suitcases and toy collections…smdh
very interesting article G-Roc. unfortunately Bape stopped being the exclusive brand they used to be, and that lead to their demise. with time, maybe this new hong kong company will mass market bape… who knows wat they would do with it? i do predit a whole lot more of fakes comin out of hong kong though
LoL @ L.A.
Nice article. Being a business owner myself this is great insight of what NOT to do. BAPE had some great years tho. I’m sure Nigo is good on money for a while and is off to greener pastures. Good luck to you Sir. Goodbye BAPE…you can join FUBU in designer heaven..lol
Before I read it I have to say that I am surprised that it happened and that it sold for so low.
Quote
This was the general understanding about A Bathing Ape’s success: They would always use specific marketing techniques to appear underground even when selling to millions of young Japanese across the country. I understood this “brand cachet über alles” strategy to be so integral to their success that I ended my thesis with the prediction, “Once the Ura-Harajuku cultural complex disintegrates, Ape may lose its subcultural base and will be subject to the normal forces of fad market structures. [Founder] Nigo will probably stop producing Ape before this point in order to save the brand’s reputation.”
End quote
I never got too into Bape but its a business lesson for sure. G-Roc is right, this is a must read.
I’m an older guy so maybe that’s why this is no suprise to me. I mean did anybody think this would be a lasting brand?! They had had shoes the color of rainbow brite and skittles.
Had to come back and say no wonder everybody is going to China and making all these China specials. Again, for anybody who wants to know what’s up, its a must read.
I would wear Bape if they were more reasonably priced. even after all of the hype they were still coming hard with alot of their more toned down releases, but that price tag is what always steered me away.
China is running ish man lol, and BAPE has been dead to me for a long time. Only people I see rocking it as of late are Big Sean and dude got swag (no homo) but that just shows you how overpriced the clothes were, rapppers wear that stuff.
good article. Never get a big portion of money and blow it on bullsht. especially if you own a company in the fashion industry. trends come and go and you may become victim to the change.
That crap has been dead for the last 4 years. That’s what they get for ripping of the air force one.
damn.. i always wanted those shark varsity hoodie…
those cost like 1000 bucks. and 2 million they bought for??
wtf..
At all the haters and people saying bape has been dead. Just because your favorite rapper stopped wearing bape doesnt mean its dead. In america we truly only follow trends and can careless about a brand. Thats why we see folks who all of a sudden say streetwear and sneakers are dead. Because most people follow brands as a fad . Bape set the standard for streetwear for almost 20 years . They were one of the first true lifestyle brands that emerged from streetwear. I swear some of yall come across as real ignorant.
man, bapes was wack from day one. pplz clamoring to buy them $200+ AF1 look alikes….i’m good.
Coulda seen this coming a mile away…This was pure and simple Business Economics 101..the company simply grew themselves right out of business…
bape is wizzack.
fad, stollen design, and wack. Always rocked forces peace out wack shyt.
GOTTA GIVE THEM PROPS…I STILL SAY THANKS TO THIS COMPANY NIKE STEPPED UP THERE AF1 GAME.
their shit was so damn expensive thats why i never fucked with them, plus their shoe where af1 knockoffs and they looked like they were marketed towards queers
BAPE = SOULJA BOY – THE END!
I don’t know how things work over there but I’m pretty sure you’ll hear that nigo is broke or selling his shit to make ends meet, its sad cause they have really cool t-shirt designs but they were trying to rape consumers, we gave u power and we can take it away, look at u now!