Image via Complex Original
Kanye West's hyped collaboration with APC dropped today, and as can be expected, Yeezus freaks flocked to the APC website—causing it to crash—and also waited outside New York City's APC stores. Being seasoned reporters and often-accused Kanye Stans, we went to see what all the fuss was about.
We got our hands on most of the collection, examined the garments up close, and broke down just how much everything costs. Is it worth the hype—let alone the price? From where it's made, how it fits, and where you can still buy it, here's Everything You Need to Know About the Kanye West x APC Collaboration.
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People had been lining up outside the SoHo store since 7 a.m. this morning.
We got on the scene at around 9 am. The New York stores usually open at noon on Sundays, but to accomodate the demand and invevitable campers, they opened at 10 am. The line wasn't that bad, until the day got later. By 10 am the line at the SoHo store got noticeably longer. They let people in about ten at a time.
It's expensive, but only to "regular people."
The U.S. site went live at 10 am this morning, and immediately broke the Internet. APC's price point is up there, but not as expensive as designer brands like Givenchy or Louis Vuitton. Still, this isn't an easily affordable collection. T-shirts alone are $120, jeans are $265, and hoodies are going for $250-$280. But hey, if you're used to prices at spots like Supreme, then it's probably not that expensive to you.
All sales are final.
If you choose to pull the trigger on a piece, it's a commitment you're making forever. While APC usually offers a 14-day exchange period on full-price items, buying one of these means no returns. This even applies to online orders. In addition, you're limited to a quanity of one collaboration item per style in your cart.
Not that it matters if you're just looking to flip things. In which case, you are a BAD PERSON.
The branding is minimal, but still there.
Kanye West and APC's penchant for minimalism shines through. West's recent minimalist phase is why this collaboration works so well. Known for subtle branding, the red APC x Kanye tags are held on to the hoodies and jeans by two light stitches (similar to a Maison Martin Margiela tag), while the navy and white tees have it screenprinted on the back in a tonal color. Also there is a tiny "APC" embroidery on the backs of the hoodies.
The tops are meant to be loose and long.
The fits juxtapose really slim jeans (we'll get to those) with drapey, looser fitting tops. The hoodies feature side slits, something we've seen Kanye wear from brands like Fear of God LA and Balmain, and run pretty true to size. The "Hip-Hop T-shirt" are made of a really nice cotton blend, perfect for hot weather. They're also pretty much luxurious takes on the clasic tall tee. Everything is made from 100% cotton.
The jeans are selvedge, have a button fly, and they're SUUUUUPER skinny.
The jeans are really, really, skinny towards the ankle. The hem is around 6-7 inches. Kanye's taken the super-slim APC New Cure fit with a low rise and washed it to perfection, but there's also a raw version available, for guys who prefer to break in their denim themselves. Denimheads will be glad to know they feature a buttonfly with donut buttons and red-line selvedge at the hem, but they're made with a lockstitch and not the vintage chainstitch like other premium denim brands.
Honestly, given the supertight fit, the raw jeans were really uncomfortable, especially for the summer. But the washed jeans have a cool aesthetic if you let them stack at the bottom—reminiscent of a super worn-in pair of Dior Homme 19 cm denim. You'll probably have to size up, resulting in a loose, baggy waist and a really tapered bottom. It sounds weird but actually looks dope. You could wear these with high-tops or Jordans and kill it. Strangely, both pairs are $265. Usually raw jeans cost a little less than their washed counterparts.
The short-sleeve grey hoodie was the hottest item.
The "it" item of the day is the heather gray short sleeve hoodie Kanye's been wearing everywhere. Sizes went fast in the SoHo store, and when we got to the store in the West Village it had already sold out in a bunch of sizes. Keep in mind the sleeves are straight-up cut off. Unrolling them reveals frayed edges. You could probably DIY one for a lot less, but it wouldn't have the street cred.
The quality is good, but you're still paying a premium for the "Kanye" name.
The craftsmanship of the clothes is decent, like other brands in this price range APC sourced factories in Eastern Europe. Manily Romania for the hoodies, Macau (where their jeans are already made), and Portugal for the T-shirtsI. You're not exactly paying for first-world wages for the garment works, but they're also not being made in dangerous Bangladeshi sweatshops either. It's a good trade off between completely shoddy work and true "artisan" level construction. It doesn't exactly mean the clothes merit the price, but having Kanye's name on the tag probably drives the final cost up a bit.
The Been Trill "Trippy Symphony" shirt will purportedly be available later this week.
People were stoked to buy the Been Trill "Trippy Symphony" tee, which initially wasn't available on the US site at 10 am. Since then it's now purchasable, but you'll have to wait. None of the stores we went to today had it in stock, Virgil Abloh had called the shirt "a gem" via text message. We have reports from store employees that it should be shipping later this week. The price of admission is $140.
It's not completely sold out online, and you can "pre-order" sold out goods.
Did you just wake up? Mad because your sizes are sold out? No worries, you can currently pre-order items that have sold out. Looks like there are still plenty of hoodies, tees, and jeans up too. We initially heard that the run was pretty big, so it looks like people with a late pass will get a second chance at copping this hot collaboration.
