Interviews

Reigning Supreme: Streetwear Model on Truth Behind the Hype

By Sotheby's
Social media star Fei Fei Fu is at the forefront of fashion, best known to her Instagram followers as a model and collector of high-end streetwear. She explains the incomparable style of Supreme, which can be accessible to all but still feel one of a kind.
Fei Fei Fu

What does the brand Supreme mean to you?
Supreme is a melting pot of all fashion and culture. They take inspiration from art, music, skateboarding and fashion. I think that’s why it has had such widespread appeal. No matter what you're into there's something for you at Supreme.

What got you into collecting Supreme?
I first got into Supreme in the mid- to late 2000’s. I started to see a few pieces that were unlike anything else around at the time. When I realized how limited and hard the pieces were to buy, that made the brand even more desirable to me. I liked the fact that I would be wearing something that not many people have.

From your perspective, what makes Supreme so collectible?
People want what other people can’t have. With Supreme being so limited, having an item from a hyped collection is like having a snapshot in time — like a badge that proves you were there when the release happened. You know that these items will never be available to purchase again, so every release will always have a sense of nostalgia to it.

What was your first major Supreme memory?
The first Supreme store I visited was in New York. It was cool to see where the brand originated. Seeing everyone line up for such a long time for clothes showed me that Supreme was a lifestyle for people not just a brand. I had never seen this kind of hype with any other brand before.

What are your 5-10 favorite Supreme accessories and why?
1. Supreme × Gabriel Urist necklace 2006
2. Supreme 07SS Spalding basketball
3. Alpinestars x Supreme x Stüssy x Undefeated x Vans jacket
4. Supreme x Brooklyn Machine Works BMX bike 1998
5. Supreme 06 SS Louisville Slugger bat
6. Supreme 11 SS Lady Gaga poster
7. Supreme 1997 box logo The Origin tee

What is your all-time favorite Supreme piece?
Supreme x Brooklyn Machine Works BMX bike 1998.

Favorite Supreme collection of all time?
The old Supreme x The North Face collection.

Why do you think Supreme has such high resale value?
Social media is probably one of the biggest reasons Supreme has blown up over the last few years. There are so many pages and accounts that heavily feature Supreme, and the Supreme community has never been bigger. With so many people interested in buying Supreme it makes the limited items harder and harder to buy.

People go crazy for Supreme accessories. What makes them so appealing?
Supreme is always finding new ways to make the most unique accessories around. Just about anything they slap their logo on instantly seems that much cooler— from a Fender guitar and pinball table to a crowbar or a brick. I feel people get more excited by the seasons accessory line up than they do the clothes.

If you could only have one Supreme accessory, which would it be?
Supreme x Brooklyn Machine Works BMX bike 1998.

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