NEW YORK — Nigo, the mastermind behind A Bathing Ape, the Japanese-based apparel and sneaker line, was in town this week to mark the opening of the first freestanding A Bathing Ape store in the U.S. Flanked by international camera crews, the eccentric designer was seated at a banquette on the boutique’s stark-white second floor, bundled in a leather jacket and knit cap. He sat quietly, with an interpreter at his side, occasionally letting a smile slip to reveal a mouthful of platinum-plated dentures.
The 3,000-square-foot minimalistic duplex store, which opened Sunday, is located at 91 Greene Street here. The front window houses a rotating conveyor belt of candy-colored sneakers. “We were considering opening the store in the Meatpacking District,” Nigo said through an interpreter, “but SoHo is where I came when I first started visiting New York, so it made sense to open here.”
Nigo, who lives in Tokyo, created A Bathing Ape (abbreviated as BAPE) 11 years ago. The popularity of the ape-logo label quickly spread through the underground culture in Japan and eventually made its way to the U.S. via graffiti and hip-hop artists in the know. To add to the underground/anti-mainstream allure, Nigo typically creates limited editions and quantities of his sneakers, Ts and hoodies, and is known to limit the number of purchases to one per customer.
At 33 years old, he is rumored to be the richest designer in Tokyo. There are fifteen BAPE stores, in Tokyo, Osaka and London.
“It’s just not cool if everyone is wearing the same style,” said Nigo of his limited editions, while customers browsed the racks of clothing on floors below. Apparel and accessories are housed on the first floor, and 24 pairs of sneakers are ensconced in well-lit glass cases on the second floor. Retail prices at the boutique range from $13 for a cell phone cleaner to $1,624 for a leather jacket.
The boutique houses a unisex collection of sneakers, T-shirts and hoodies, as well as A Bathing Ape toys, totes, pillows, scarves, hats and accessories such as iPod cases and wallets. The ape logo is inspired by the film “Planet of the Apes,” and Nigo boasts one of the world’s largest collections of memorabilia from the 1968 film.
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In Japan, A Bathing Ape encompasses furniture, cafes and hair salons, but Nigo has no plans to launch those ventures here. “It took me one year to open this store, so right now, this is it,” he said. “My friends kept telling me I have a lot of supporters here, but I felt like, without a store, how would I really know?”
Besides, he has other ventures in New York already. Most recently, Nigo helped his friend, hip-hop artist and producer Pharrell Williams, develop his Ice Cream and Billionaire Boys Club footwear and apparel lines for Reebok.
The location of his boutique puts him in great company. His prime location puts him on a block with Louis Vuitton, Anna Sui, Jill Stuart and Kirna Zabete. Nigo said he respects the work of his neighbors and is happy to be in a community with them. He also hopes the success of his neighbors will help him reach a broader customer base.
“I’m not really concerned with targeting a specific consumer. If people see something in the window and they’re interested in it, they should come in and check it out,” Nigo said.