Would you pay $758 for a pair of replicated vintage Levi’s jeans reincarnated by another brand?  The Japanese label Evisu sure thinks so.  A limited edition range under the Evisu Private Stock label, pays homage to three original vintage styles by Levi’s.  The three styles to be sold mirror the images of Levi’s 1944 501 jeans (500 pairs at $358 each), the 1890 “Nevada” jeans (250 pairs at $558 each), and the 1917 “Campbell” jeans (100 pairs at $758).

Each pair of jeans is packaged in an elaborate wooden box and will be available at select specialty stores in August, including Barneys New York, American Rag, Fred Segal, Atrium and evisu.com.

“The Private Stock collection is a showcase for Evisu to retell the story of some of denim history’s most iconic jeans,” said Scott Morrison, chief executive officer of Evisu. “We’re not remaking a Levi’s jean, nor are we claiming that this is a Levi’s jean. We’re merely taking inspiration from our past and paying homage to one of the oldest, or historically relevant, jeans in existence, which in this case happens to have been an amazing pair of Levi’s. Denim has a wonderful story to tell and as denim designers you can’t help but find ideas for the future by looking in the past.” (WWD)

Well, let’s see what the outcome is after Levi’s investigates the details of these “inspired” jeans.  It will either be a nod of flattery or the denim demons will have to put an end to this.

–Nikki Cho Russo