Supreme, why in Japan?
The red box with letters “Supreme” on it is now a logo very recognizable to many of us in the world. Established in New York city in 1994 as American skateboarding lifestyle brand, Supreme has shown immense popularization and become a luxury rather than a mere streetwear. The brand’s success is often contributed to its simple yet bold design that can easily seem fashionable and cool and its marketing strategy that utilized celebrity’s fame and their “Kanye effect”. However, what many do not realize is that its popularity in the United States is incomparable to that of Japan. Out of only 12 Supreme stores in the world, half of them actually exist in Japan, a country smaller than the size of California. You may be wondering, why specifically in Japan? Why did they decide to concentrate it in such a small country? The answer lies in Supreme’s business model and Japanese people’s consumption style.
Supreme uses a so-called hype business model. They release only two collections a year, dropping a few items with limited quantity throughout the season. Because they have a limited amount of supply that does not meet the overwhelming demand, the brand creates a competition among the customers. The competition will put customers in a hype, making them willing to pay extra money to get the items.
Although it may not be obvious, Japanese people are used to this business model. When you travel in Japan, you often see packages of food and souvenirs with a tagline, “only available in this area”. This is because of rich subcultures that exist in each prefecture that allows those items to be rare. Most of those items have ingredients or designs only traditional and authentic to the specific area, making it only buyable there. The scarcity of those souvenirs drive visitors to purchase those goods, sustaining the rural prefecture’s economy. Children in Japan are also suckers for limited edition toys that require competition. From premium Pokemon cards to plushies in claw grabber machines, there are many toys in Japan that require kids to spend their money and time. Supreme drops create a similar situation for fashionable, young people in Japan. Growing up in those business models, Japanese people are more likely to try and purchase Supreme items than in other countries.
The reason why there are so many limited editions in Japan can be credited to the class culture in Japan. Even though the caste system was abolished in 1871, its after effects are still evident in Japanese culture. One example is conspicuous consumption. Conspicuous consumption is an expenditure of luxuries and unnecessary goods to demonstrate one’s wealth and power. On open class days in Japan where parents get to observe children’s typical school day, you will witness many moms with expensive brand bags from Hermes Birkin and Louis Vuitton. This is driven by their desire to show off their family’s class and culture. Supreme has the same effect as those brand bags for the younger generation. Through the red box logo, they show off their resources that allowed them to get a hold of the luxurious items.
The success of supreme in Japan is due to its business model’s appeal to the citizen’s consumption style there. While the design may be simple, Supreme as a brand symbolizes a bigger meaning: the customer’s affluence to win the competition and acquire an expensive, rare item.
