27 HYPEBEAST

For uniting sneakerheads into a lucrative demographic

I“In the world of hype, in the world of cool, you need to be the coolest platform selling the coolest products,” says Kevin Ma, the unflappable founder of the Hong Kong–based streetwear site Hypebeast. Championing edgy brands such as Raf Simons, Vetements, and Hood by Air, Ma’s site has grown from a simple sneakerhead review hub (created in his Vancouver bedroom) to a multifaceted arbiter of all manner of urban fashion and culture that includes Hypebeast, the year-old female-focused Hypebae, and an online marketplace called HBX that sells everything from Yeezy Boosts to Leica cameras. Proof that Ma knows how to stay on just the right side of the hype cycle: Much of Hypebeast’s 46% increase in revenue in the first six months of last year was fueled by its growing creative services division, which helps brands such as Gucci and Adidas produce advertising for both Ma’s sites and others’. Ma is also manipulating the tentacles of his operation to maximum effect. He ignites followers with weekly “Top Drops” on HBX, featuring sales of limited-edition sneakers and T-shirts, and leverages the data generated by Hypebeast and its associated sites to figure out what to stock on the e-commerce arm. “Once we publish an article about things that we think will be hot, we can see the data and reaction and engagement from the community,” Ma says. “It’s a mix of technology and so-called big data that influences our buying decisions.” Hypebae, for example, was born last February from the insight that women account for 15% of the traffic to the male-dominated Hypebeast. The company is now growing its editorial staff as it prepares for further global expansion. The United States already accounts for more than half of its sales; mainland China and its billions of feet, Ma hopes, are next.