Fujiwara, who now runs the Fragment Designs label – a notable recent collaboration includes a well-received partnership with Moncler – has continued to disrupt the fashion world with groundbreaking creative efforts like the avant-garde Nike HTM line.

A partnership with then-Nike CEO Mark Parker and sneaker designer Tinker Hatfield, this model upped classic models like the Air Force 1 and paved the way for sneakers to become the next big thing in the world. fashion decades later.

“It made collaborations a big thing in the sneaker world and followed with other unprecedented partnerships with brands like Louis Vuitton, Levi’s – and even Pokemon and Starbucks,” Khee observed.

At the same time, Nigo was also making a name for himself through partnerships with the cool crowd around the world, most notably the Billionaire Boys Club, which he co-founded with musician and producer Pharrell Williams.

By this time, streetwear had gained a reputation not only for its high-quality production, even though it was only “casual” clothing, but also because it was produced in limited quantities and came out irregularly. in “drops” which did not respect the week of fashion. Spring / Summer or Fall / Winter collections calendar. This meant that fans had to be extremely in the know as to when their desired merchandise would drop and many had no qualms about lining up outside the store to score the first dibs.

By the early 2000s, it had become de rigueur for streetwear fans to spend hours lining up in front of popular stores like Supreme and sneaker stores to get their hands on what they wanted, which led to the start of “hype” culture. Soon the brand would become a behemoth in its own right, leading to a global boom in street culture in major cities around the world.

“As much Supreme is known as the cool and OG of underground New York skate culture, he’s also the one that made the beast (hype) grow,” Khee said with a laugh. “Interestingly, it was his entire ‘keep it niche’ and ‘limited edition’ movement that ultimately led him to go mainstream. “