Can Amazon Win the Great Streetwear Race?

Here’s why Amazon & Zappos’s investment in streetwear retailer Concepts matters. HYPEBEAST [Features]( August 31, 2018 [Can Amazon Win the Great Streetwear Race?]( Here’s why Amazon & Zappos’s investment in streetwear retailer Concepts matters. [concepts amazon zappos]( EDDIE ENG/HYPEBEAST The landmark Supreme investment signified sweeping change for the streetwear industry, effectively confirming streetwear’s rebirth as bonafide big business and signifying the shrinking gap between streetwear and high fashion. Since then, LVMH quietly bought into Stadium Goods, Louis Vuitton tapped streetwear’s frontman Virgil Abloh to take over its menswear operation, and every major fashion company from Gucci to ASOS has jumped on the bandwagon. With the streetwear movement firmly cemented in the mainstream fashion conversation, observers may have wondered: what’s next? Enter Amazon. Earlier this month, Massachusetts-based footwear and streetwear retailer Concepts quietly confirmed “a relationship” with Amazon’s Zappos subsidiary. “We have been engaged with our friends at Zappos and finalized a relationship that will help Concepts achieve our mission to elevate the customer experience within the boutique industry,” said Tarek Hassan, CEO of Concepts International, in a statement. While the exact nature of the relationship has not been specified, the boutique confirmed investment from Zappos. I don’t think kids care about Amazon right now. I mean, that’s probably why they want in the business. [masaaki homma mastermind vs bape store]( EDDIE ENG/HYPEBEAST As a streetwear boutique, Concepts is the very definition of “cool.” A history of well-received sneaker collaborations informed by thoughtful storytelling and appealing colorways is key to the store’s popularity. A consistent selection of covetable clothing and hyped sneaker drops bolster the brand name, confirming Concepts as one of streetwear’s preferred names. As such, any outside party looking to break into streetwear would be hard-pressed to find any better entry point than Hassan’s international sneaker boutique. Beyond boosting Concepts’s own strengths, this partnership allows Zappos and Amazon to get its foot in the door of the industry. Though Concepts and Zappos may initially seem like strange bedfellows, the pairing is less unconventional than it initially reads. Zappos’s famously lighthearted company culture, with its annual culture books and approachable CEO, puts it at odds with Amazon’s more traditionally corporate structure. Moreover, Zappos’s $2 billion USD+ in sales and consistently increasing annual revenue since 2003 gives it the resources to bolster Concepts’s core business structure and — according to sources close to the situation — provide financial relief to the boutique. Finally, the relationship between the two parties has long been in the works: Zappos launched the female-focused, streetwear-adjacent imprint, The_ONES, in 2017, tapping Concepts owner Tarek Hassan to aid in launching in-store pop-ups during the initial rollout. [READ FULL ARTICLE ON HYPEBEAST →](   [Go to Preference Centre](     [More HYPEBEAST Features]( [[FOOTWEAR]( [A Closer Look at the UNDERCOVER x Nike React Element 87]( [[FASHION]( [8 Drops You Don't Want to Miss This Week]( Get The App Free on iOS and Android Follow 2018 HYPEBEAST Limited. All Rights Reserved [Manage Subscriptions]( You can unsubscribe by click [here](3D--f14e4b3faaba4f5bb332767e066ed0835a66b72d531b095e544e7d6f9b30a775). It may take 48 hours to complete the unsubscribe process. Contact subscription@hypebeast.com for assistance on any enquiries. You are receiving this email because you have subscribed to HYPEBEAST's marketing emails. You can unsubscribe from us any time by clicking [here](3D--f14e4b3faaba4f5bb332767e066ed0835a66b72d531b095e544e7d6f9b30a775). Our Mailing Address: HYPEBEAST, 10F, KC 100, 100 Kwai Cheong Road, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong