Yahoo Lifestyle Willy Chavarria Invited to Show at Paris Men’s Fashion Week
This is Willy Chavarria’s time.
After years of toiling away at a slew of brands including Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, American Eagle Outfitters, Yeezy, Dickies Construct and others, the designer is increasingly being recognized for his own collection. In the past year, Chavarria has been honored with Designer of the Year at the Latin American Fashion Awards as well as the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year.
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Now he’s been asked to show during Paris Men’s Fashion Week in January. His debut will be Jan. 24 at 6 p.m.
“It’s very exciting and very cool,” he told WWD. “I’m very, very grateful because I’ve been doing this for so long — and this is the right moment for it. We’re a New York-based American brand through and through, but it’s time to go a little more global on messaging as we expand onto other continents.”
The Willy Chavarria brand, which wholesales through Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, Dover Street Market, Maxfield’s and other U.S. retailers, currently sells in 12 countries with the strongest performance in Asia and Europe, he said. The line is carried in the U.K., Spain, Italy, France, the Netherlands as well China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore.
“About two-and-a-half years ago, we started to make serious, mature decisions about how the business was going to run.” His husband, who had worked in Copenhagen for the Pandora jewelry brand for eight years, returned to the U.S. and joined his company as chief financial officer and chief operating officer. Chavarria said: “He really rebooted the direction of the company. We’ve got a great showroom now and we’ve pivoted into a real business.”
Chavarria, 57, launched his line in 2015 and used money from his other design gigs to support it. He retains 100 percent ownership of the business, and by 2019 the brand was funding itself. In addition to its wholesale efforts, the website, which was recently revamped, has been growing by 100 to 120 percent year-over-year.
By showing during Paris Fashion Week, Chavarria hopes to connect with more buyers, who go to the city to place their orders during that January time frame.
“That’s when you need to lock in with the buyers if you want to grow your wholesale business,” he said, adding that being in Paris allows the company to “have more of a presence. A lot of retailers are not able to make it to my New York shows or they’ve already placed their orders by that time. Now they can see the show and place their orders at the same time.”
Before the invitation came from the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, the organizing body for Paris Fashion Week, Chavarria said he had been spending more time in the city during market weeks, showing his collection in a local showroom there. But being part of the official calendar is a milestone for him and the company.
“I was never that person who said I wanted to show in Paris,” he said. “But as the brand evolves and grows, we had to make decisions that are strategic for the business.”
Although he didn’t reveal too much about what he’ll be showing on the runway there next month, he said he will use the opportunity to address human rights issues.
“Since Nov. 5 [U.S. election day], we’ve seen so many artists, designers, musicians — anyone who has the privilege and responsibility to touch lots of people,” he said. “There’s a message of inclusivity, love and human equality that needs to be more powerful than ever before. So the message in my show will be one that will address civil rights globally.”
The Mexican American designer, who grew up in the small city of Huron in California’s San Joaquin Valley, has always had the Mexican working class spirit ingrained in his ethos thanks to his parents, who originate from both Mexican and Irish descent.
As he described in a recent interview: “Growing up mixed race in a Mexican American environment, mostly Mexicans, it was immigrants who were living in the town that I grew up in, and given the fact that my parents had met after desegregation, I was always very aware of the politics behind race. So when I started my own label — and just living my life — I felt it was very important to share that awareness with others, and I’ve incorporated the need for equality and the need for recognition of Latino empowerment in all my work.”
Chavarria has become known for oversize garments and lowrider-inspired silhouettes, as well as details that range from dropped shoulders to ruching, wide legs and cropped cuts. He is also known for bringing race, politics and sexuality into “elegant” apparel. He was one of the first New York designers to cast only models of color and has used his platform to celebrate Latino influence in fashion.
But while Chavarria is honored to be participating this coming season in Paris, he stressed that he’s not abandoning New York forever.
“I love showing in New York and this doesn’t mean I won’t be showing there ever again,” he said. “It’s important for me to have a presence and be part of New York Fashion Week. I’m very appreciative of the loyalty I’ve been shown by the CFDA and Anna [Wintour, global chief content officer of Condé Nast], and New York is my home. So I obviously won’t be showing there this season, but I’ll be back.”
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