Luxury fashion is undergoing a major shift. Logo tees, hoodies, and other streetwear are no longer separate from high fashion—in fact, they have become some of its main ingredients.
The latest signal of this evolution comes from Louis Vuitton. The namesake fashion brand of LVMH, the world’s largest luxury house, just announced the new designer of its menswear collection: Virgil Abloh. Instead of coming from a heritage pedigree, however, the founder of fashion label Off-White is know for his affiliation with streetwear and for being Kanye West’s creative director.
It’s a historic move for other reasons, too. Abloh joins a very short list of black designers to head prestigious fashion houses, including Olivier Rousteing, who is currently at Balmain, and Ozwald Boateng, who designed Givenchy menswear from 2003 to 2007.
Louis Vuitton is by far the biggest of these brands, and its choice of Abloh also reveals how the house is planning for its future.
