If the mood at the Tokyo Stock Exchange this week is anything to go by, reports of streetwear’s death have been greatly exaggerated. On Thursday morning, Nigo and Pharrell Williams took to the trading floor to ring the opening bell, celebrating a blockbuster IPO launch for Nigo’s streetwear brand Human Made.
With the loss of former Louis Vuitton men’s creative director Virgil Abloh, and the decline of Supreme, streetwear has seen a turbulent few years in the West that have led many to question its longevity. In Japan, however, the category is entering a phase of maturity, with Human Made paving the way. Thursday’s IPO — the first streetwear IPO in history — was so popular with investors that the original share price shot up almost 30% during its first few days on the market, proving that streetwear brands with credibility and cultural roots can still scale globally.
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Speaking on the listing, Jian Deleon, men’s fashion director at Nordstrom, drew parallels with a streetwear drop. “The demand quite literally exceeded the supply, and the oversubscribed IPO essentially functioned as a microcosm for the industry it symbolizes,” he says. All the excitement around the launch makes Human Made’s aim to raise JPY 17.8 billion ($114 million) for global expansion look wholly realistic. It also signals Japanese streetwear, which has long been central to the conversation, as a trailblazing leader in the space, underscoring that well-positioned labels in the category can still thrive in 2025 and beyond.
Building a legacy
While the IPO is a positive sign for Japanese streetwear as a whole, Human Made had a head start. Nigo, whose real name is Tomoaki Nagao, is a brand in his own right. Founding A Bathing Ape (Bape) in 1993, he sold the company to the Hong Kong-based I.T in 2011 before establishing Human Made in 2016. He was then tapped by LVMH to head up Kenzo in 2021. Add to that legacy his celebrity friendships and bromance with Pharrell, and there’s an airtight recipe for streetwear success.
“Nigo has got real credibility and deep tissue connections with overseas players,” says Michael Causton, co-founder of JapanConsuming and an expert in the Japanese retail and consumer markets. The move to go public burnishes the designer’s position as a global industry heavyweight even further, cementing his place on streetwear’s Mount Rushmore alongside Abloh, Hiroshi Fujiwara, James Jebbia and Shawn Stussy.
“As the Nigo brand continues to grow in terms of global influence, Human Made reaps the benefits as well,” says Tyler Watamanuk, author of Bigger Than Fashion: How “Streetwear” Conquered Fashion Culture, published in November. The brand, which already makes two-thirds of its revenue from overseas sales but has a limited standalone retail presence, is primed for a global takeover. A 700-square-meter, three-story flagship store is planned in Harajuku for next year, followed by stores in Shanghai and the US. Human Made reported operating margins of 28% in the year ended January 2025 — in line with successful fashion brands — plus a 100% sell-through rate.
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This stability, bolstered by executive hires including Rei Matsunuma (who was previously a director at Uniqlo) as CEO, sets the brand up for further success. “It’s a really impressive and incredibly disciplined machine,” says Causton. He predicts the IPO is only the start. “In future, we might even end up seeing something like a Human Made holdings group.”
Experts also say that Nigo’s ironclad reputation, and the buzz of Human Made’s success, will create a halo effect for Japanese labels who follow suit. Pierre-Yves Donzé, professor of global business history at the University of Osaka, believes the IPO will inspire a new wave of local brands to be more ambitious, and compares the move to what many European labels did in the ’90s and 2000s when looking to expand globally. “[The success of the IPO] shows fashion brands that they have the potential to grow outside of Japan,” he says. “Now is the time for them to do it.”
Japan is fertile ground for streetwear
There are plenty of cautionary tales about building streetwear giants and conglomerates in the West, from Supreme’s aforementioned decline post-acquisition under VF Corp to the slow unraveling of streetwear conglomerate New Guards Group’s brand portfolio. But the Japanese market still holds potential for big-name streetwear brands to thrive. According to Deleon, the subcultural clout that helped propel early streetwear brands into the mainstream doesn’t seem to matter as much to the Asian consumer. A brand doesn’t need to be underground, provided it maintains its “aura” and supply remains scarce.
“The thrill of the hunt and line culture still seems to be thriving in Tokyo,” Deleon says, adding that in the West, that energy is being redirected to smaller independent brands like Hellstar and Corteiz. Causton also notes a move toward “considered” streetwear, with the younger generation “less concerned about branded hoodies and more about fabrication and details”. Japan, which is already known for its craftsmanship and attention to detail, makes it a natural home for the next gen. This weekend, Human Made is poised to release a collaboration with Japanese fashion label Undercover, with denim jackets made in Japan and featuring embroidered mascots from both houses. Expected to sell out, online purchases are limited to one product per person.
Japan’s declining domestic consumer market has been hobbled by stagnant wages and a weak yen, but Japanese streetwear labels can capitalize on the marked increase of inbound tourists, who are visiting Japan to shop. “The weak yen amplifies Japan’s competitiveness, making premium streetwear and limited-edition drops more accessible to international buyers and fueling export demand,” says Fflur Roberts, head of luxury goods at Euromonitor. The inbound market also provides a good testing opportunity for local brands who are considering expanding. “If you can sell it to foreigners in Japan, you should be able to do it abroad,” says Donzé.
Immunity to the hype cycle
They may not be able to replicate Nigo’s legacy, but other local players should consider its playbook. Human Made managed to evolve past hype cycles and adopted an alternative retail model to Western players, securing its longevity, experts agree. “Human Made occupies a rarefied space within the [streetwear] genre,” says Watamanuk. “It has never shown the drastic peaks or valleys in hype and demand that other labels have experienced, and has instead maintained a steady presence.”
The label uses the streetwear drop model in a regulated and habitual way, announcing new product on Thursdays to be sold on Saturdays. There are no ultra-limited items or un-gettable grails, just a steady stream of product that invites the buyer into Nigo’s world and the Americana-with-a-streetwear-twist design language that he’s known for. Exclusivity is maintained, but there is less of the frenzied hype, virality and mile-long queues that defined the 2010s Supreme era. The brand also doesn’t position itself as streetwear in the traditional sense. “We do not categorize our brand as streetwear. Rather, it is more likely positioned as lifestylewear, guided by our brand concept, ‘the future is in the past’, as we are not rooted in street cultures such as hip-hop or skateboarding,” a spokesperson for the brand said.
Sarah Andelman, founder of Just An Idea Books (and friend to Pharrell and Nigo), believes that Human Made’s success is down to the world-building that takes it beyond logo tees and varsity jackets. “I think [what Nigo has done with] Human Made is more than just streetwear,” she says. “It’s a global brand, with a lifestyle and a vision, like a coffee or fast food brand.” The brand’s product mix is all-encompassing: the distinctive cheeky heart logo appearing on everything from bath towels to umbrellas. The website even sells boxes of Japanese curry from Nigo’s Tokyo restaurant Curry Up (yup, he’s a restaurateur, too). “It’s universal,” says Andelman.
Potential for the next generation
In Japan, newer brands that don’t have the same legacy as Human Made or Bape can take advantage of the heritage that surrounds them. CarService, a streetwear brand founded in 2015, began as an Instagram account documenting Japan’s car culture and now makes workwear-inspired sweaters and Hot Wheels-style keychains that quickly sell out. Birth of The Teenager (BoTT) is another rising name that recently partnered with Japanese graphic artist and streetwear icon Verdy on a pop-up in Shibuya’s Parco department store. Fake As Flowers (FAF) is yet another, winning last year’s Tokyo Fashion Award for streetwear staples like hoodies and cargo pants rich with colorful prints and detailed embroidery.
Whether they can eventually follow Human Made’s trajectory remains to be seen, but Nigo’s slow-burning success proves that with the right strategy (and the right people) streetwear can grow up without losing its edge. Adapting to the category’s shifting expectations is key, however. “Today’s streetwear audience is no longer defined by wealth or exclusivity alone,” says Roberts. “Instead, they seek purpose-driven brands, culturally relevant collaborations, and products that reflect values such as sustainability and self-expression.”
