The fashion company called A Bathing Ape (Bape) was the brainchild of an eclectic designer named Nigo. This ultra-exclusive streetwear company was born in the Harajuku region of Tokyo during the 1990s. Most if not all of Bape's thematic ideas are puns on the movie, The Planet of the Apes. Nigo is a huge hip-hop fan, and he has integrated hip-hop themes and graphic design concepts into his clothing. As a result of Nigo's unique approach to fashion marketing (basically, he doesn't market and he does things like hide his shops and prevent customers from purchasing more than one piece of apparel at a time), he has become a major celebrity figure in Japan, rating a personal estate of tens of millions of dollars. Nigo recently opened a Bape outlet in Soho New York, which attracted throngs of "in the know" fans. One of Bape's most dedicated celebrity aficionados is Pharrell Williams, who is best known as one of the musical geniuses behind the group The Neptunes. Bape T shirts can resell for thousands of dollars, and the brand shows no signs of losing its cool cachet. Indeed, A Bathing Ape has inspired a complete toy line and its very own record label, and Nigo has been hired to design candles, Pepsi labels, eclectic items, and a number of shoes. | 
