Supreme is a relatively young company compared to the century-old Gucci, but which is more expensive?
When referring to brand new items, Gucci is considerably more expensive than Supreme. However, Supreme’s business model and increasing aftermarket value mean that its products can eventually rival the likes of Gucci.
Read on to learn more about Gucci, Supreme, and how they fit into the scale of luxury fashions.
Supreme Starting Simple
In the world of fashion, Supreme is a remarkably young brand, having been founded in 1994. It’s nowhere near as established as industry leaders such as Hermes, Gucci, and Prada, but it has grown considerably in a very short period of time.
Originally, Supreme was marketed as a ‘skateboarding brand’, operating out of Manhattan. From its very origins, Supreme was a unique business, with a store that permitted skateboarders to quite literally ride around inside it.
There was a substantially slow uptake where Supreme was concerned and it took a decade for a second location to open, this time in California. As the years wore on and Supreme became exponentially more popular, the company opened stores in capital hubs around the world: Paris, London, and Tokyo, for example.
By 2020, Supreme boasted a roster of just twelve stores, with the majority of its business taking place online. Its business model was considerably unique, with new items dropping every Thursday, or every Saturday for the Japanese markets.
The creative minds behind Supreme relied heavily on artistry and bright, vibrant designs. Almost every Supreme product created was designed with exclusivity in mind, and limited stock was always a key concern.
Ultimately, it serves as one of the main drivers behind Supreme’s financial and commercial successes. Their items are scarce and sell out dramatically fast, a fact which rapidly pushes up the aftermarket value of their merchandise.
When compared to other luxury brands, Supreme isn’t actually all that expensive. They have collaborated with top tier names such as Gucci and Louis Vuitton, but those are really the only products where the cost goes through the roof.
At retail, you can pick up Supreme products for little more than one or two hundred dollars. If you’re lucky enough to buy them straight from the company, you’ll get them at their cheapest level.
However, if you miss the initial offerings and have to buy them from resellers or collectors, you’ll be paying a huge amount more. Supreme’s clothing has some of the biggest resell values out of any brand in the industry.
Going Gucci
Gucci has been near the forefront of the fashion industry for a century and has made its name as one of the finest and most expensive brands on the market. Its price-per-product value is considerably higher, sometimes dramatically higher, than Supreme.
A brand new Supreme jacket would likely set you back no more than two or three hundred dollars. However, a similar jacket from Gucci might cost as much as three or four thousand dollars.
The Italian masters behind Gucci founded the company way back in 1921, in Florence, Italy. Today, the company they created is estimated to be worth as much as seventeen billion dollars.
By comparison, Supreme is thought to be worth around one billion dollars. It’s likely the extra decades in the industry have effectively boosted Gucci’s position somewhat.
Battle Of The Brands
Both Supreme and Gucci’s products are known as ‘Veblen’ goods. These are luxury items that increase in demand as the price increases exponentially, something which contradicts traditional laws of demand.
Ultimately, it comes down to image, status symbols, and the desire to have something that others cannot. These products become Veblen goods when their prices go up because the elite and the super-rich see them as being more desirable because few others can afford them.
It’s not entirely fair to pit Gucci and Supreme against one another. They do tend to have different markets, with Supreme’s demographic being made up of young people, mostly teenagers.
After all, Supreme started life as a skateboarding brand, while Gucci cut its teeth in the high-end, luxury fashion markets. While they offer a similar range of products, their styles are also dramatically different.
The fashion industry is a deeply competitive one, with countless brands fighting it out for the top spots. While Gucci and Supreme fit very comfortably into their niches, neither rank at the very top tier of the fashion world.