Kanye West loves to talk about his “family”. Not just Kim Kardashian and North West—but the people he surrounds himself with. Since 2002, Virgil Abloh has served as West’s Creative Director, advising on everything from merchandise (yes, those Yeezus tees) to stage design. Abloh is now making a name for himself away from West, with his own menswear and womenswear line Off-White C/O Virgil Abloh.
Off the back of Abloh’s first womenswear presentation in Paris last month, Racked dug deep into his history. With a backer like West, we expect big things. Keep scrolling for our top seven reasons why you should have Virgil Abloh and Off-White on your radar, then shop our favourite pieces.
Virgil Abloh was the mastermind behind Pyrex Vision—the label that dominated streetwear in 2013 and was worn by the likes of Beyoncé, Christine Centenera and Elle Fanning.
He has an eye for what’s cool. Abloh is one of the founders of R$VP Gallery – a boutique stocking cult-items from brands like Givenchy, 3.1 Phillip Lim and KDIA. You have to be quick to score a piece from his store though because everything sells out almost immediately.
He was a finalist for this year’s prestigious LVMH Prize created by the luxury group that houses Louis Vuitton and Céline. The prize was introduced in 2013 to help support young fashion designers.
Fashion director of Vogue Australia, Christine Centenera assisted Abloh with the direction of his label, has featured Off-White in fashion editorials and often wears the brand herself. If Centenera touches it, it’s guaranteed gold.
His streetwear-meets-luxury vibe is trending with supermodels. Gigi Hadid was spotted last week in one of his designs and Bambi Northwood-Blythe is also a fan.
Off-White is currently stocked in Barneys, Selfridges, Maxfield, Colette, SSense and Farfetch—the calibre of these retailers is not to be ignored...
He’s best friends with a superstar. "Virgil is one of the smartest, fastest, most innovative people I’ve created with," West told The New York Timeslate last year.
What do you think about Off-White? Is it here to stay? Let us know in the comments below!
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