The ’80s to the 2020s: How Streetwear Grew Up
From first wave to present day, the brands embracing maturity through culture, design and collaboration.
Streetwear is no longer an angsty teenager. Born from a cultural cocktail of music, skateboarding, graffiti and other emergent subcultures, the brands that ushered in the first wave of streetwear—Stüssy, BAPE and Supreme—are entering their third and even fourth decade of life. But as an industry built around and for the youth, how do the labels and the fans who love them keep that connection alive as they age out of graphic tees and hoodies? Perhaps more importantly, how do they do it without losing their edge?
Each brand is answering these questions in its own ways, demonstrating that streetwear is less a concrete set of rules and more an idea anchored by long-standing principles.