Supreme’s roots in Japan are deep. Supreme opened their first store in Japan just four years after their inception in 1994. The list of Japanese collaborators for Supreme is extensive, ranging from WTAPS to Fragment to Comme des Garçons SHIRT to Undercover to BAPE even. For the most part, Supreme had collaborated with every big Japanese name in the streetwear space. One of the few exceptions of this extensive list, one of the few Japanese designers Supreme had not collaborated with, was Yohji Yamamoto. But now, in 2020, 26 years after Supreme was founded in New York and 22 years after Supreme opened their first Japan store in Daikanyama, the two are collaborating.
The Supreme x Yohji Yamamoto collaboration news was met with uncontained excitement from fans, even when it was just a rumor. The collaboration delivers the usual co-branded logo t-shirts and crewnecks that feature Supreme and Yohji Yamamoto’s brand marks in a painted fashion on the chest of each garment. But the collection also includes items for the Supreme and Yohji Yamamoto purists like a full suit featuring artwork by Peter Saville and a knit sweater of the same style as 2018’s Supreme x Comme des Garçons SHIRT collaboration. Pieces like the parkas and leather work jackets remind us of Supreme collaborations of old, the ones that have since become elusive grails, nearly impossible to find anywhere.
This collaboration is about nostalgia. For most, Supreme has changed in the last few years and this collaboration is more in line with something that would’ve released in 2015. The last time a collection featuring items similar to this was the 2018 Comme des Garçons SHIRT collaboration which included a lot of similar items and carried with it the same feeling of something oddly situated between avant garde and streetwear. For many, that position is what’s given Supreme the draw it has. Perhaps with the release of this collaboration Supreme will incorporate that spirit again. If not, this release has been a great opportunity to reminisce on the golden years.
Shop highlights from the Supreme x Yohji Yamamoto collaboration below and the entire drop on StockX here.
