Everyone Knows Levi's But Everyone Should Know About Levi's Wild Year
Levi's is the very definition of a household name, a brand so familiar to the entire planet that it's practically become the genericization of "denim" or "jeans." To say that Levi's had a solid 2023 is to say that the sky is blue or that I am going to eat the entire bucket of movie theater popcorn whenever I go to the theater — these things are inevitabilities.
To be clear, Levi's is keeping things conservative on the financial side — it recently reported modestly underwhelming third-quarter 2023 financials, a (still impressive) $1.51 billion in revenue as opposed to the expected $1.54 billion.
But on the style side, in terms of coolness and taste, Levi's is hitting peaks unheard of for a heritage label.
There aren't many other centuries-old companies capable of doing the things that Levi's is doing right now, let alone any other workwear or denim brands dominating the fashion side of things this hard.
To whit, Levi's began 2023 by collaborating with a handful of inarguably cool companies: UNDERCOVER, AMBUSH, Junya Watanabe MAN, and effervescent streetwear brand Stüssy. Heck, Levi's and Stüssy are so close that they dropped two collaborations this year alone. Now that's love.
It's a solid foundation for what turned out to be a year full of Levi's best collaborations in years — considering how many excellent team-ups Levi's does every year, that's saying something.
Levi's did it all this year.
It proved its stylistic chops by partnering with luxury labels like KENZO — separate from a standalone NIGO team-up that released several months prior — and edgy fashion wavemakers like ERL and Slam Jam. Levi's also flexed its insider-y chops by linking with cultish imprints like JJJJound and Bornxraised (and this one company called Highsnobiety), demonstrating that even a label as established as Levi's is able to organically tap into the IYKYK youth culture cred that so few other heritage labels are able to attain.
"Denim is a part of everyone's life and is a must have in anyone’s wardrobe. [In particular,] Levi’s is a staple — it’s all my father wears to this day," JJJJound founder Justin Saunders told Highsnobiety around the time of his collaboration. "For the most part, the 501 is an icon that doesn’t need to be changed whatsoever."
Speaking of the 501, Levi's signature pair of pants turned 150 in 2023 and celebrated its big year with a host of special drops.
These included eco-friendly pants, Japanese-made jeans, and one pair of $900 dungarees that hearken back to the good ol' days of miners wearing their Levi's 'til they collapse. Well, maybe those old days weren't so good but they are the origin of Levi's as a company. Maybe they're better described as the important ol' days.
And that's just scratching the surface. Levi's hit niche markets with a Studio Ghibli collab and a campaign starring K-Pop phenom NewJeans — was there ever a better group of blue jeans pitchwomen? — while leaning into comparably specific fashion sectors with partners like Japanese megaretailer BEAMS (and rival stores Journal Standard and EDIFICE) and British fashion provocateur Kiko Kostadinov.
Then there's the Levi's footwear, which ranges from a surprisingly excellent New Balance 580 collab to an even more surprising and even more excellent debut team-up with Crocs, which birthed a pair of handsome denim-flavored clogs.
Great stuff all around.
And that's not touching on Levi's Vintage Clothing, the in-house high-end Levi's line, responsible for those $900 miner jeans and an expectedly strong selection of heritage-minded classics. Levi's Made and Crafted is quietly improving season-on-season and the reintroduction of Levi's Silvertab was long overdue, bringing baggy '90s goodness to the Y2K-crazed consumer.
Lots to like, really, but I find the best examples of Levi's incredible 2023 in its partnerships and team-ups, as you can tell from the emphasis I've placed upon collaborations over in-line action. They say you ought to judge someone by the company they keep, y'know.
By that metric, Levi's remains in a class of its own, so humbly omnipresent that you'd be forgiven for not grasping just how huge its year actually was.
