Williams steps into one of the highest-profile jobs in fashion.
Multi-hyphenate musician and entrepreneur Pharrell Williams will become Louis Vuitton’s next artistic director of menswear, the brand confirmed on Tuesday, following a Wall Street Journal report.
The appointment fills one of fashion’s most high-profile vacancies, open since Virgil Abloh died in November 2021. A flurry of names have been touted for the position, including designers Martine Rose, Grace Wales Bonner, Samuel Ross and Jonathan Anderson. KidSuper founder Colm Dillane is also thought to be in the running, having participated in the creation of Louis Vuitton’s Autumn/Winter 2023 collection.
It marks the first big decision of Pietro Beccari, who, on 1 February, took the helm of the world’s largest luxury brand from outgoing CEO Michael Burke.
Williams is no stranger to fashion. He is co-owner of the streetwear brand Human Made with Kenzo creative director Nigo; founder of the Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream streetwear brands; co-owner of G-Star Raw Denim, and a regular collaborator with Tiffany & Co. The entrepreneur ventured into beauty with gender neutral brand Humanrace in 2021. He is also a longtime friend of Chanel and served as a muse to the late Karl Lagerfeld, and attended the recent Métiers d’art show in Dakar. He also attended the Off-White show last February in Paris.
Williams is also among those slated to unveil new design concepts at Moncler’s latest Genius activation during London Fashion Week on 20 February. A representative for Williams could not be reached for comment for this story.
This article was originally published on Vogue UK.
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