The Bored Ape Yacht Club, a popular non-fungible token (NFT) collection, is teaming up with Japanese streetwear brand BAPE (A Bathing Ape) for a collaboration that combines the two brands’ aesthetics. The announcement was made by Yuga Labs, the creator of Bored Ape Yacht Club, on Twitter.
The collaboration will initially take the form of a physical streetwear drop, which will be available in limited quantities at the Bored Apes’ ApeFest Hong Kong event in November. The designs for the apparel will be reimagined from BAPE’s deep archives, bringing a sense of nostalgia and a return to the golden age of streetwear collecting.
The release of the collaboration’s apparel will follow a token-gated portal system, with Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT owners getting the first opportunity to purchase. After that, BAPE’s own Bapetaverse NFT project holders will have a chance to acquire the items. Finally, the collection will be released to the general public through BAPE stores and its online shop in December.
The collaboration between Bored Ape Yacht Club and BAPE comes as no surprise, as the two brands share a mutual admiration. Greg Solano, co-founder of Yuga Labs, expressed his enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating that it feels like the most natural thing in the world for the two brands to collaborate.
BAPE, founded in 1993 by Tomoaki “Nigo” Nagao, is a renowned streetwear brand known for its collaborations with various brands and creators. It has worked with big names like Marvel, Nintendo, Pharrell Williams, and Kanye West, making it a perfect fit for a collaboration with the Bored Ape Yacht Club.
The Bored Ape Yacht Club, with its unique artwork and distinctive ape characters, has become one of the most prominent NFT projects to date. It has generated nearly $3 billion in trading volume for the main collection, and even more from spinoff and subsequent collections. Yuga Labs has previously collaborated with other fashion brands like Adidas and Gucci, and NFT holders have used their Bored Ape artwork to create merchandise and derivative projects.
The collaboration between the Bored Ape Yacht Club and BAPE is expected to generate a lot of excitement among fans of both brands. It showcases the growing influence and integration of NFTs and the fashion industry, as digital art and collectibles continue to cross over into the physical world.
