What Happened to Aupen? Where to Shop Bags Seen on Beyonce, Blue Ivy
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Beyoncé “borrowed” one from Blue Ivy. Taylor Swift carried one while on a date night with Travis Kelce. And Olivia Rodrigo slung one over her shoulder while hanging out with rising pop star Tate McRae. We’re talking about Aupen, the minimalist-chic accessories line seen on the queens of pop, Oscar winners and practically everyone on the “It” girl list.
Pronounced “open,” the brand recently announced on Instagram that “after 18 months, Aupen design collective bids goodbye,” prompting fans to stock up en masse on the artful carryalls, which are priced from $180 to $420. The company’s website notes that the “design team is on a break,” but there’s still some good(ish) news. The brand says its operations and customer service teams are still up and running, and that there may be another drop in June.
Queen Bey, Blue Ivy and Hailey Bieber have all carried the Purpose bag ($180), a sleek leather shoulder bag with an angular shape; while Gal Gadot carried it in a white colorway and Selena Gomez sported a crystal fringe-embellished version. Taylor Swift has been seen with the Nirvana (now sold out), a slouchy assymetrical carryall with a braided handle and sculptural gold bag charm. Kylie Jenner and Gabrielle Union are among the stars who have toted the Fearless purse.
Based in Singapore, Aupen launched in October 2022 and first offered its bags in vegan leather. It seemed to arise of nowhere, as Glamour reported, and its explosion of celebrity placements within a year its debut undoubtedly raised eyebrows among fashion industry insiders wondering about the brand’s anonymous A-list hookup. (A celebrity stylist co-founder? A starry investor?)
The Hollywood Reporter earlier this year sat down with Aupen’s Singapore-based commercial director to get to know the real people behind the faceless brand. He explained that the company decided to move from vegan materials to Leather Working Group-certified calfskin leather, and began using repurposed croc leather accents that came from the cutting room floor of the factory that manufactures for Hermès. (Those pieces are seen in the Nirvana Kiss silhouette, which came with authentication cards for the croc leather; it’s also now sold out.) The spotlight-shy designers, he said, prefer to remain as an anonymous collective (at the time, they were based in San Francisco, Brooklyn and Singapore) to allow the designs to speak for themselves.
The brand’s jewelry is an A-list favorite, too. The gold Splash earrings were recently worn by Oscar winner Emma Stone, while Dakota Johnson donned the silver Wave earrings last year.
Below, see which Aupen pieces are still available to shop online, and stay tuned for more.
