Believe the Hype, Man

In recent weeks we’ve talked a lot about trends and how understanding them can be valuable to our own projects and ideas. When something becomes popular, and acts as a trend in pop culture, the hype surrounding the brand or product can reach epic levels. One brand that has reached this status is clothing company Supreme. For those of you unfamiliar, Supreme is a streetwear brand that is known for their red and white logo that is splattered across their products. The brand has a cult following and wearing a shirt or sweatshirt has become a status symbol in popular culture.

The brand is so popular, in fact, that it was even featured on my favorite new Netflix show, Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj (side note- if you haven’t seen it you should; it’s great). The show is part stand-up, part news segment, and each episode focuses on a certain subject.

Last week Minhaj focused on the brand and how their hype is manufactured through limited releases and the model of scarcity. Which then opens the re-sell market value on these products upwards of over 400%.

To drive the point even further the show created their own line of Supreme shirts releasing only 100 on their website for $7.75 each. The shirts sold out and are now re-selling for more than $100 for some styles. Only proving the point that hype and, ultimately, what is trending can do a lot to help your brand.

The value of hype and how to use it is something we can all think about as we finish our final projects.