LABEL LOVER
OFF WHITE
When Kanye West’s creative director Virgil Abloh (below) decided to go it alone, it was never going to be anything but cool, punchy and fresh. Since launching Off White in 2013 Abloh has become one of the designers credited with having firmly cemented streetwear in the luxury realm. Abloh, who studied architecture and engineering before interning at Fendi and then moving on to Kanye, has a talent for translating utility and necessity into luxury. “I love the challenge,” he says. “I am super excited about the future and possibilities of streetwear and high fashion.” Aside from clothes, Abloh has designed a range of furniture that was shown at Art Basel Miami in 2016, and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago is planning to present a retrospective of his work in 2019. So how does that feel? “Very surreal,” he says. “It is with great honour that I accepted.” Off White is available to purchase at I.T. stores and has just opened a flagship in Shanghai and a second outlet in Hong Kong.