Birkenstock CEO on Turning Down Supreme Collab: 'This Is Just Prostitution'

When it comes to hyped fashion collaborations, NYC’s Supreme reigns, well, supreme.

The iconic streetwear brand has joined forces with some of the industry’s biggest names, including Vans, Nike, Levi's, The North Face, and even French fashion house Louis Vuitton. Like most Supreme gear, many of these collaborations flew off the shelves in the matter of minutes—which is why most companies would jump at the chance to work with a brand as coveted as Supreme; however, when Birkenstock was approached with a collaboration offer, the footwear company was like, “nah.”

In a recent article by The Cut, fashion critic Cathy Horyn provided an in-depth look at Birkenstock’s $800 million operations and its recent surge in popularity; however, one of the highlights of the article is when Birkenstock CEO Oliver Reichert revealed he had turned down collaboration proposals from Supreme and Vetements. Now you might be wondering why he would turn down such potentially lucrative offers. Well, Reichert insists Birkenstock simply didn’t need them.

“There’s no benefit for us except prostitution,” he said. “Because this is just prostitution.”

Shortly after The Cut published the article, a Vetements spokesperson confirmed the label was in talks with Birkenstock; however, it was ultimately “decided that the collaboration wouldn't be pursued further given design/production restraints etc. […] They (Birkenstock) actually were initially interested and then the collaboration didn't come to fruition due to design technicalities.”