How many people would pay almost 1,500 bucks for a wetsuit? Born Slippy founder Charles Gadsdon is hoping for exactly 1,000. Retailing at €1,295 for men’s and women’s 5/4, 4/3, and 3/2 suits, Aptus 1.0 is among the most expensive wetsuit currently on the surf market. The obvious question is why?

“Custom wetsuits exist. So do Yamamoto neoprene and alternative thermal technologies. But our ambition with APTUS 1.0 was to combine these elements into one exceptional product”, explained Gadsdon. “It’s not about one standout feature, but bringing everything together without compromising on the specification. That’s what €1,295 reflects: materials, craftsmanship, individual fit and technical construction.”

The production is also capped at 1,000 individually numbered pieces worldwide. When unit 1,000 ships, the Aptus 1.0 line ends. This could be seen as a way to inject scarcity (and therefore price) into the equation, maybe even adding some luxury-lined FOMO.…