The Bapesta Phenomena

BAPE founder NIGO’s impact on the streetwear scene cannot be underestimated. The Japanese designer came with revolutionary (and not always understood) ideas and concepts that have stood the test of time. This is the case of the Bapesta, a trainer invented by the Japanese designer at the beginning of the early ’00s. The silhouette has since become a must-have, with co-signs from Kanye, Pharrell and more.

NIGO has not been part of BAPE since 2013, having sold 90% of its shares in 2011. NIGO’s desire to throw himself into new projects became apparent when he founded Human Made in 2010, but his 20 years of work have been instrumental in charting the way for the entire Japanese fashion movement. The Bapesta is just the tip of an immense iceberg. The silhouette echoed the Nike Air Force 1 Low and only really differed with its painted upper and elongated star in place of Nike’s classic swoosh.

The official debut of the Bapesta came in 2000, a period that lacked any form of true sneaker innovation. NIGO’s goal was to revitalise the trainer market in his own way: to use his immense creativity to bring his brand, and Japan, into the spotlight. The shoe was successful because it offered solutions for all tastes. While the white Air Force 1 had previously monopolised the market, the Bapesta arrived with a mix of colours and patterns never seen before. With its star-shaped ‘STA’ logo on the sides, its wide variation of colours and designs became a hit, attracting famous artists such as Pharrell Williams, Jay Z and Pusha T.

NIGO wanted to recreate the Air Force 1 but in BAPE’s signature style. In fact, Nike never staged a lawsuit against NIGO, but instead saw an opportunity. Matt Mason, author of The Pirate’s Dilemma, writing in The Economist, cites the case of “a Japanese design company, A Bathing Ape (BAPE), which remixed (“pirated”) Nike’s shoes. But rather than sue, Nike bought a stake in BAPE and launched its own remixes, earning new revenue by catering to a niche market it had neglected.”

The Bapestas represented one of the most egregious cases of bootlegging in the fashion world, a practice that is quite common in the market today. Their role was to bring Japanese streetwear, with its eclectic style, to the forefront. Japan has always been a scene all of its own, and NIGO’s foray was a revolution. His hip-hop, punk, skate and art background was the background for the birth of BAPE. But before that, Jun Takahashi and Nigo started something special by opening the store, NOWHERE, in 1993. The original shop was the first retailer to sell both Undercover and BAPE, and its unique reputation and product mix gave it legendary status in the streetwear world.

It was the beginning of the rise of Japanese streetwear. “Young people would dress up in American brands like Levi’s, Ralph Lauren, or outdoor brands like The North Face and walk around Shibuya. No matter the genre though, it was always brands from outside Japan. It was cool to see domestic products made by people who knew about cultures outside the country,” says Takahiro Ito, Editor for HYPEBEAST.

Urahara is the name where NOWHERE was born and the Japanese streetwear movement was taking its first steps. It wasn’t populated by the big luxury giants like today, but by many vintage and independent boutiques. Figures like NIGO and Takahashi put it into the heads of the Japanese that they could make their own way, without looking to other worlds.

BAPE (and Japanese) imagery became more and more interesting because of its versatility and the conception of a fashion that was less tied to shapes than to concepts. Eclectic personalities such as Pharrell Williams and Kanye West were among the first to embrace this way of interpreting fashion. Increasingly experimental and outside any traditional logic.

With the former, he founded Billionaire Boys Club in 2005, and with the latter, he created Bapesta’s most iconic silhouette in 2007. Inspired by West’s first album, The College Dropout, NIGO gave the Chicago rapper the opportunity to collaborate with one of his favourite brands at the time. From then on, BAPE became a cult brand worldwide, helped by the fact that it was exclusive to the Japanese market and hard to find. The collaboration with Kanye, produced in a limited number of pieces, built the definitive bridge between East and West.

Pharrell also pushed the growth of BAPE in the States. The producer first wore the brand in his 2003 ‘Frontin’ music video and later in Snoop Dogg’s ‘Let’s Get Blown’ video – in the latter Skateboard P wore a bright red hoodie that would later be known to the streetwear scene as ‘Pharrell Camo’. The same colours were used for the trainer created for N.E.R.D in 2006.

In 2005, the Bapesta was released in collaboration with KAWS in light grey, the same colour scheme used for the Jordan 4 x KAWS. This was just the beginning of a long partnership between the two designers. To this day, it is virtually unobtainable in this model at any price. On the other hand, the Bapesta Kaws Chompers, released in 2006, can still be found but at exorbitant prices.

The Bapesta star, in order to shake off its image of being a Nike knock-off, had to find a way to become unique. Creating new silhouettes with different colourways and collaborators, from Spongebob to Daft Punk, became the hallmark of the Bapesta. Here, you can find a detailed list of all of BAPE’s collaborations since 1998.

In 2020, BAPE celebrated the 20th anniversary of its iconic silhouette with a dedicated capsule. For the younger generation, reliving a myth like the Bapesta could only be a boon. When we think about the re-release of iconic trainers, we often don’t consider the real value, which is the history and culture of an entire movement. Furthermore, last December saw the release of a collaboration with Reebok on a classic, the Club C. Taking inspiration from four colours often used in the Bapesta (red, blue, purple and white), they revitalised the Reebok upper without affecting tradition. There are no typical Bapesta extravagances, but the right balance between minimalism and bright colours.