Vetements
Vetements, Vetements
WHEN WAS VETEMENTS FOUNDED?
Vetements was founded in 2014.
WHERE IS VETEMENTS BASED?
Zürich, Switzerland.
WHO IS THE FOUNDER OF VETEMENTS?
Demna Gvasalia
WHO IS THE CEO OF VETEMENTS?
Guram Gvasalia
WHAT IS VETEMENTS?
Vetements is a clothing brand that creates a wide range of menswear and womenswear inspired by everyday fashion and regular people. Vetements was perhaps one of the most hyped fashion brands a few years back, now headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland. Vetements garnered widespread attention with their Spring/Summer 2016 which was a big hit collection – a modified yellow DHL t-shirt modeled on the runway by Russian fashion designer Gosha Rubchinskiy, became that summer’s must-have piece and established Vetements as a major player in contemporary street fashion.
Vetements continued to court controversy and stir up conversation in the fashion world with its unorthodox approach to high fashion. The brand is known for casting its models from Instagram and other unusual places, and collections have taken inspiration from far-flung areas such as death metal, office workers, kitchen aprons, and more.
In recent years, the brand has been slightly overshadowed by the founder Demna Gvasalia’s move, who now works as the creative director of Balenciaga. Vetements has continued to sell and create fashion collections, with the loyal fanbase still there.
WHO MADE VETEMENTS?
Vetements was founded by Georgian fashion designer Demna Gvasalia alongside his brother Guram, who presides as CEO overseeing the brand’s business operations.
As head of Vetements’ business operations, Guram Gvasalia has repeatedly stressed the clear business and commercial thinking behind Vetements; imposing maximum orders on buyers (rather than minimums) to ensure product stays limited; placing high prices on items to create an allure of luxury and scarcity; cultivating the brand as a “club” of sorts, for fashion insiders.
WHAT DOES VETEMENTS MEAN?
Pronounced “vet-MAW,” Vetements is French for “clothing.” The choice of name for the fashion collective was alleged to be one that reflects its original philosophy as having no sub or supra identity, only made for being worn.
HOW DID VETEMENTS START?
Demna Gvasalia graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp in 2006 and began working as a womenswear designer for Maison Martin Margiela in 2009. Having graduated from the same institution as Martin Margiela and the rest of Antwerp 6, it might be unsurprising to see many of the same influences and fascinations in Gvasalia’s work. In 2012, Gvasalia became head designer for Louis Vuitton’s womenswear for 2 years, and then branched off to launch his own label, Vetements, in 2014.
What is also worth noting, however, is that many of Vetements’ most popular pieces are a continuation of the work Martin Margiela did with his own fashion label over a decade ago, such as reconstructed denim, asymmetrical shirting and footwear with hand-drawn doodles across them.
As a result, some have interpreted Vetements as a commercial reinterpretation of the Margiela ethos. Nonetheless, the brand continues to be one of the leading voices in contemporary fashion.
Gosha Rubchinskiy walked in the DHL t-shirt as part of Vetements’ SS16 show in October 2015, and after the public announcement of Demna Gvasalia as the CEO and front-row fashion show guests such as Kanye West and Travis Scott made headlines, it did not take very long for the brand’s pieces to sell out as soon as they dropped.
WHICH VETEMENTS ITEM OF CLOTHING WENT THE MOST VIRAL?
Vetement’s DHL t-shirt went viral after Gocha Rubchinskiy walked in it during the SS16 show, and it similarly picked up a lot of media attention for its price. Headlines were questioning whether Vetements was being subversive or merely scamming customers for a t-shirt at the price of €245.
In 2018 however, the Paris label continued with the DHL collection in the form of a formal collaboration with the company, presenting it at the DHL hub in Leipzig.
WHICH CELEBRITIES HAVE NOTABLY WORN VETEMENTS CLOTHING?
Musicians and influencers alike have adorned Vetements’ clothing, pushing the Paris collective’s hype to an irrefutable level. Notable names include Rihanna, Kanye West, Kendall Jenner, Rita Ora and even Celine Dion.
WHAT ARE SOME NOTABLE VETEMENTS COLLABORATIONS?
Reebok, DHL, Umbro, Tommy Hilfiger, and Juicy Couture are some of Vetement’s collaborations.
2014
Vetements presents its first collection during the Fall/Winter 2014 season in Paris.
Although Gvasalia’s associations with other houses attracted the attention of numerous buyers, people were reluctant to invest heavily in such an unknown brand.
2015
Demna Gvasalia is appointed creative director at Balenciaga.
Release of the DHL T-shirt.
For the label’s Fall/Winter 2015 presentation, they made the bold decision to show their collection in Paris’ Le Dépôt sex club, a move which firmly put them on the map from that point onwards.
Kanye West shows up to Dior’s FW15 show in the now-signature oversized Vetements hoodie.
2016
Menswear pieces coincide with the reopening of Dover Street Market in London.
Vetements broke through to the mainstream with its Spring/Summer 2016 collection that caused ripples from the upper echelons of fashion to the blogosphere and social media.
The presentation’s mixture of shirts, sweats, outerwear and dresses with morphed shapes, extended sleeves, oversized cuts and modified constructions was actually in keeping with previous releases by the brand, but the brand’s streetwear-esque re-appropriation of household brands and symbology – such as DHL, Champion and the film Titanic.
2017
54 look line-ups containing collaborations with brands such as Juicy Couture, Dr. Martens and Canada Goose.
Vetements X DHL collab becomes available on MR PORTER online store.
For the brand’s Fall/Winter 2017 presentation, models ranged from older women in opulent fur coats, to bulky black men resembling nightclub security, to leather-clad punks with foot-long red spikey hair, in a collection that was largely interpreted as a celebration of everyday people and the beauty of irregularity.
The same year, the Gvasalia brothers broke the mold even further by announcing that they would no longer be following traditional fashion schedules, instead choosing to present collections as and when they liked.
2018
For Vetements Spring/Summer 2018 presentation in Paris, tha label held a “NO SHOW” show, located on top of a car park in the city center, with photographs of street-cast models on the streets of Zurich, where the brand recently moved its headquarters.
2020
Vetements Paris Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2020 collection featured fast-food themed references.
2021
Vetements launched a new sub-label, VTMTS, aimed at the younger generation.
Kanye West wears the Vetements hoodie first seen as part of the label’s FW15 collection.
2022
Vetements Spring/Summer 2023 collection featured oversized graphic tees.
Vetements Fall/Winter 2022/23 collection taps the new digital era with references to crypto riches, bringing back its signature graphic tees.
