Vetements Is Introducing a New Fashion Brand in July – WWD

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Vetements is to unveil a new brand on July 22 — the first step in creating “a new version of what a conglomerate could look like.

“It’s time to dare, to do things that are different,” Guram Gvasalia, cofounder and chief executive officer of Vetements, told WWD in an interview on Friday evening, when the Zurich-based house released a short teaser video in lieu of a new collection during the mostly digital version of Paris Men’s Fashion Week.

The clip, showing flickering scenes of modern cities, high-tech factories and a supermarket checkout interspersed with blooming flowers, ends with a blinking eyeball overlaid with the launch date for a “secret project.”

Gvasalia declined to name the brand, but said the collection would have an aesthetic different from Vetements, be inspired by men’s wear and sartorial codes, but would “speak to all genders.”

It will come under the new Gvasalia Family Foundation, described as a “new experimental laboratory, a multidimensional platform for young talent, which could one day replace traditional conglomerate structures by redefining co-working spaces and co-creating experiences.”

The foundation is to provide mentoring, technical development, production, supply chain, distribution and financial support. “This way the new brands can stay true to their own aesthetic and not be forced to chase market trends, or worse, having to sell their souls to the devils of the industry,” Vetements said in a statement.

Gvasalia first divulged plans to create a platform for young talent in October 2019 when he spoke at the WWD Fashion and Retail CEO Summit, describing a need for the right infrastructure, leverage and know-how that a company like Vetements can provide.

On Friday, he described the new platform as a “shelter for talent” that won’t be “suppressed by a corporate structure.” He also made clear that brands are based on an idea and design concepts, rather than an individual or figurehead.

Additions to the platform in the future might not necessarily be in the fashion sector, Gvasalia said, noting how Vetements recently extended its brand into food by launching a branded burger with Moscow fashion retailer KM20.

Separately on Friday, Vetements said it would launch a 2.0 version of its fast-food meal at KM20 in new neon packaging, and start a global expansion with burgers later this year, “with its next stop in South Korea.”

Vetements unveiled a spring 2022 collection online last May that include prints of green computer code that represented the virtual reality environment of the “Matrix” movies.

Founded in 2014, Vetements and its designing cofounder Demna Gvasalia are widely credited with sparking the streetwear trend in fashion. Demna Gvasalia stepped down from Vetements in 2019 and is now focused on Balenciaga, where he has been creative director since 2015.

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