Founder of A Bathing Ape clothing line is a huge Star Wars fan. He even collected Star Wars toys and sold his collection today. He has a special connection to the toys. Hit the jump to find out why.

Emma Rabid: Twitter ~ Instagram

Today, he sold his Star Wars collectible collection for $502,000. The auction led up to the drop of the “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” movie, tonight at midnight. His collection included original Star Wars toys, the first off the factory lines back in the 1970’s.

Nigo, who founded A Bathing Ape clothing line, says Star Wars influenced his designs. He says he got inspiration from the movie to pursue his own goals on a massive scale.

“Star Wars has a bigger story. It has a dream,” Nigo said.

This just goes to show how international Star Wars is. Experts project the release tonight to break records, saying a “hysteria” is developing. With BAPE’s Nigo making $502,000 off the release already, the actual gross profit should be in the multi millions.

Source: Fortune