Why Apple’s $230 cloth iPhone Pocket is already sold out — and who’s behind it

Apple’s latest limited-edition accessory has sparked scenes more familiar to a high-fashion drop than a tech launch. Early on Friday, crowds formed outside the company’s SoHo store in New York, eager to buy the new iPhone Pocket, a wearable pouch costing up to $230 and created in collaboration with the Japanese fashion house Issey Miyake. Within minutes, stock vanished both in-store and online. Here is why the product ignited such demand.

A fashion-tech crossover with cult appeal

The iPhone Pocket is no ordinary phone sling. Designed with Miyake’s signature 3D-knitted fabric and available in short ($150 equivalent) and long ($230 equivalent) versions, it taps into the label’s design heritage. Miyake’s association with Steve Jobs, whose black turtleneck became part of Apple lore, has helped build a dedicated global following.

For many shoppers, the appeal lies less in utility and more in owning a piece that sits at the intersection of two influential brands. New York fashion designer Lee Aizner described the design as “so cool” and admitted that the mere rumour of it selling out made her want it even more.

Limited availability drove the rush

Apple listed only ten physical stores worldwide that would stock the pouch, with SoHo as the sole US location. Other outlets are in major fashion capitals including Tokyo, London, Paris and Milan. With such constrained distribution, and every colour quickly marked as sold out online, scarcity became part of the product’s allure.

Buyers arriving even moments after opening time found shelves cleared. One customer, Owen Sanders, said he managed to secure the last short pink pouch for his wife, a Miyake devotee.

A wearable trend Apple wants in on

This launch continues Apple’s recent push into wearable phone accessories. In September, the company released a crossbody add-on that turns the iPhone into a small handbag, nodding to a trend long popular across Asia.

The new pouch takes that idea further, offering a stretchable knitted sleeve that can hold extras like AirPods or lip balm. Its unusual karate-belt-like texture and multiple styling options, cross-body, hand-held or attached to a bag, position it closer to fashion than pure tech.

Nostalgia and the art-collectable mindset

Older Apple fans have also drawn comparisons to the early-2000s iPod Socks, colourful knit covers that became a quirky cult item. For some buyers, this new launch feels like a modern reinterpretation of that playful era.

Content creator Michael Josh, dressed head-to-toe in Miyake for the occasion, bought several pouches and likened them to art objects. “Some people won’t understand the hype,” he said, but for collectors, the appeal is in craftsmanship and cultural significance rather than practicality.

Criticism hasn’t dampened demand

Despite the rush, reactions online have been mixed. Reddit users mocked the release as a sign Apple was out of touch in a difficult economic climate. Others dismissed it as an April Fools-style gimmick.

But among fashion-minded customers, scepticism only underscored its status as a niche luxury item. For them, exclusivity is part of the value and the near-instant sell-out shows Apple and Miyake knew exactly who they were appealing to.