Bape and its Japanese Gorilla.

A Bathing Ape or Bape is a streetwear brand founded in Japan in the 1990s by Nigo, A young designer (DJ, drummer and producer), who made it a wellspring of millions.

The nickname "Nigo" of the Japanese designer comes from his admiration for Hiroshi Fujiwara. Since NIGO literally means number two (without negative connotations, it goes to say that NIGO was a kind of Fujiwara two). NIGO studied at Bunka Fashion College but, instead of studying design, she attended fashion editing. As we can see, the spirit of the Japanese was not so much to make history from scratch, but to be the chronicler of it or to replicate it.

At just 35 years old, Nigo has managed to not only found an entire empire but a lifestyle around his brand. His first store was in the Harajuku area, in Shibuya, Tokyo, in 1993, and he only sold T-shirts. Now, in addition to the Baby Milo & Bathing Ape T-shirts, the firm also makes sneakers (Bape Sta trainers), jeans and underwear. And today it not only has almost 25 clothing stores: there is a hair salon (Bape Cuts), an art gallery (Bape Gallery), the Bape Cafe, the Ape Sounds record label, (B) apeTV and a line of toys . He was even commissioned to design a limited-edition Pepsi bottle. And there is talk of a Bape Hotel. "It's my lifestyle. I don't want to just make clothes, I don't want to have a clothing brand: I want to have a lifestyle brand. It's very simple. I wanted a comfortable lifestyle. Now I have that lifestyle and I have everything I want, "he said in an interview. Wearing a Bape design means "belonging", being part of a circle whose epicenter is a cult mark. And in that, it is known, massiveness is a prohibited concept.

Bape History

Bape's history is born where streetwear also does it: in Ura-Harajuku, the mythical Japanese commercial area. It is there, in 1993, when NIGO decides to run the Nowhere store together with Jun Takahashi. The first used this space to sell the pieces he found for his trips around the world, while the second sold his own project: UNDERCOVER. The success of this brand led NIGO to also start its business adventure. For this he was inspired by ‘The Planet of the Apes’ and the result would change the urban fas

hion and hip hop scene forever.

The name of this brand comes from a Japanese saying, something like "bathing in warm water", which refers to the predisposition of young Japanese people to follow popular trends. His designs are exclusive and super expensive: his marketing tool is precisely limited production, which increases demand.

NIGO, and BAPE, represent the appropriationist spirit (in the positive sense of the term) of urban culture and hip hop. He who, beyond generating original manifestations, revitalizes existing creations. Mix pre-existing realities to conceptualize new ones. BAPE combined the musical nature of rap itself (expressed through the concept of the sample) with the hijack attitude of urban fashion. As the phrase attributed to Picasso says, great artists steal.

The legendary Bapesta.

Of all that BAPE has achieved, from its extensive catalog of products, BAPESTA is possibly the quintessential brand imaginary. The silhouette, released in the early 2000s, is a stylistic tracing of Air Force One with a few variations. Instead of the word AIR in the midsole we find the reference to the model (STA), the swoosh disappears in favor of the star logo and the materials go from leather to more premium, or simply flashy, such as shiny leather or snake skin.

That's really what's interesting about this model. The Bapesta are not a copy, they are the pure urban scene condensed in a shoe. Using the collage technique, NIGO borrows one of the essential hip hop icons, the Air Force, and creates a new and much more inspiring sneaker at the time and place. Based on your references to continue creating is what NIGO does.

BAPE and Bapesta were part of some of the most outstanding pop phenomena of the late 2000s. From the collaboration with Kanye West, who would be the germ of the state of the art of streetwear today, to his presence in the video of 'Crank That ', the mythical theme of Soulja Boy in what would be the first viral phenomenon in the history of music. There was a time when rap was not understood without visualizing the characteristic patterns and colorways of the brand.

Great collaborations from Bape

Nigo is also a co-owner and chief designer of the Pharrell Williams Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream clothing brands. They have made many collaborations with prominent brands. We will show you some of these:

 Bape Champions:Many T-shirts, sweatshirts and hoodies printed some with the logo of the sports brand and others printed with the camouflage and the logo of the Japanese streetwear brand.

Bape + Stussy: Hoodies and sweatshirts with the characteristic camouflage that Bape always puts on his clothes combined with the Stussy logo, without a doubt an incredible combination.

Bape + Astro Boy: A collection of clothing inspired by the beloved character. A hooded sweatshirt with the face of the childhood hero of many. They complete the Baby Milo collection together with Astro Boy, two new limited edition dolls.

Bape + Lacoste: T-shirts, polerones and hats, where the Lacoste crocodile bites the Bape gorilla.

Bape + Hermès: the legendary French leather goods store also falls for the Japanese hip hop brand. Take a look at Hermès' bags, with the shark's teeth at one end.

Bape + Adidas: the most notorious and global collaboration; the new NMDs with the typical Bape camouflage have been sales records.

Bape and Rap

The connection between BAPE and hip hop also comes from the relationships it establishes with some of the proper names on the scene. Through Jacob, the mythical jeweler of all rappers, NIGO makes contact with Pharell. Despite the language barrier, they connect thanks to an identical vision of fashion and culture. The Japanese would later influence the BBC and Ice Cream brands, while the American would support BAPE's expansion in America, creating new fans like Clipse or Lil Wayne. This does not mean that the brand was alien to the big MCS, since legends like Biggie already wore clothes years ago.

Bape now (Equality)

In January 2005, Nigo and Pharrell Williams launched the first Bathing Ape store in New York. As we have said before, Nigo is also the co-owner and main designer of the Pharrell, Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream Footwear brands. In 2006, Nigo and N-Kei Enzaki started with a record company, Ape Sounds, with the help of James Lavelle, a UK DJ and owner of the Mo ’Wax label. He helps as producer and director for his CDs, mixing Western Hip Hop with Asian sounds.

We found A Bathing Ape (BAPE) Stores in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, London, Taipei, Hong Kong, Japan (there are 18 A Bathing Ape in Japan stores)

Clothing A Bathing Ape (BAPE)

A Bathing Ape produces t-shirts, sweaters, sweatshirts, hoodies, kangaroo jumpsuits, parkas, underwear, jackets, jeans, and the most notable ... «Bape Sta«, shoes that are very similar to the Nike Air Force One.

Hip Hop Bape Clothing is now worn by a variety of celebrities including: Jin, Pharrell Williams, Jermaine Dupri, Kanye West, Robin Williams, Clipse

In 2011 the brand was bought by the Chinese fashion conglomerate I.T. Group, but Nigo remained its creative director, much to the peace of his fans. I present Baby Milo, a little monkey, symbol and mascot of the brand; He appears dressed with the hits of each collection and already has his own store in Japan.

Bape became "the top" and transcended the eastern borders to anchor strongly in the United States, thanks to the promotion of characters such as Pharrell Williams (NERD and The Neptunes), the president of Def Jam Recordings, Jay-Z ; Fall Out Boy and rapper Lil Wayne. Precisely, Nigo is working with Pharrell on the Billionaire Boys Club clothing line (he had already designed the Ice Cream shoe line for him in collaboration with Reebok). Hip-hop loves it. "I never understand what hip-hop is talking about, but the look is cool," says Nigo.

Nigo, who describes himself as an "obsessive collector", confesses that he loves the vintage furniture of Charles Eams, everything related to "Star Wars" and "Planet of the Apes" (yes, original!), The products of Luis Vuitton and Versace, and also the art of Andy Warhol. In his personal fortune, Nigo has risen, thanks to his business, with luxury cars (Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Ferrari 360 Modena, Hummer H2 and Rolls-Royce Phantom) and a house valued at $ 30 million, in the exclusive area of Roppongi Hills in Tokyo. And, star delirium, he had his teeth covered in diamonds to match his Jacob & Co watch. of US $ 30,000 and the Flava Flav pendant. His eyes of conquest are now said to be on Europe. Meanwhile, he, introverted and reserved, only explains that although he is already present in London and a little in Italy, he still thinks that the European is a difficult market. And he reassesses his arrival in the US: "I don't want to promote or sell. I hardly want to see my things in America. I don't see if it makes money." What do you think?.