This year seems to have begun with a striking number of absences. No Kardashian-West marriage to provide threateningly stark interior design, a depressing lack of Emma Chamberlain content on Youtube and now the resignation of football star Tom Brady.
Perhaps the most shocking of them all for the fashion world is the absence of Virgil Abloh, fashion designer and founder of Milan-based streetwear brand “Off White.” Abloh — who passed away in November 2021 — is largely credited with blending the worlds of high and low fashion. Defying the elitism of major fashion houses, Abloh introduced streetwear to the world of stick-thin models and celebrity galas, providing “proof that streetwear deserved respect.”
A 2018 Washington Post article writes of the late designer: “In his work, he has not made a stuffy intellectual argument about whom and what the culture values, but he has, with nonchalance and confidence, underscored the ways in which fashion must change to adapt to its evolving customer base.”
That fashion must evolve to adapt to its customer is seen in no better example than Abloh’s very own streetwear.
Streetwear originated in the 90’s through dynamic spaces like the New York hip-hop scene and Japanese nightlife. From the beginning, it was a movement rather than a trend. At a time when mainstream brands refused to dress some musicians and athletes, the community of artists and influencers that pioneered the cultural phenomenon used their distinctive style as a form of self-expression and a way to create their own definition of fashion.
So how did streetwear get from graffiti-tagging Los Angeles skaters developing a new concept of style to teenage boys putting $4,500 shirts on their Christmas wish lists?
The answer is 2017. While the rest of us were shunning Kendall Jenner for trying to be the next Rosa Parks with a can of Pepsi, streetwear began to be sucked into the world of luxury fashion — something that would change its image for years to come.
Collaborations such as “Louis Vuitton x Supreme” and “Burberry x Gosha Rubchinskiy” showed that the world of high fashion was ready to capitalize on streetwear. Brands that used to specialize in the same iterations of miniscule tweed suits began featuring sneakers and slouchy sweatshirts in their brands.
Though in some cases fashion houses have taken experimentation in the name of streetwear too far — see repeated blackface offenses from Gucci and Prada — merging streetwear and luxury brought a refreshing approachability to high fashion and much needed ethos to streetwear. The dynamic clothing movement is now undeniably part of mainstream fashion, coveted by everyone from Justin Bieber to your 13-year-old little brother.
In recent years, however, streetwear seems to be growing into something that may not be able to sustain itself.
In the past, the movement was about defining fashion outside of the mainstream. Now, it seems most everyone has a Supreme logo strapped on their chest. Far from the DIY, experimental qualities that once defined the subculture, streetwear is now mass-manufactured and sold to rich suburban consumers and social media influencers.
The result? Once coveted YEEZYs gathering dust at retail price before finally selling out online. Evidence on StockX that the supply of overpriced, overhyped items is far greater than demand for them.
If streetwear wants to survive into the next trend cycle, I would argue it needs a return to its roots. What its consumers — primarily a generation disillusioned by a pandemic, police brutality and climate change — need right now is authenticity. Flashy runway shows and clout from luxury labels isn’t cutting it.
A brand like Corteiz is proof. Launched in 2017, the streetwear brand has set itself apart from its increasingly profit-driven sector with what Vogue Business calls its “egalitarian attitude” and “anti-establishment ethos.”
Corteiz is a “tight-knit community” actively fostering connection with its customers and gaining their trust through its dedication to authenticity. It also spearheads social responsibility, with the founder revealing after its jacket swap event this January that all the jackets were donated to a local charitable organization.
The brand’s refreshing sense of rebellion and community is perhaps why its garments sell out in minutes, and it has risen from obscurity to international fame in a matter of five years. Earlier this year in the UK, it was among the most searched-for brands on popular resale site Depop. Corteiz’s success is undeniable, and proof that streetwear needs its identity as a culture of non-conformism and authenticity in order to survive.
Brands like Off-White and Vetements should take note. If they want their labels to survive beyond the five year maturity window of their increasingly teenage consumer base, they need to review why they started their brands in the first place.
Abloh shocked the fashion world in 2020 with his famous statement that “streetwear is dead.” Yet, the dynamic designer was a huge supporter of Corteiz, the brand that seems to spell the future of the beloved subculture.
Maybe Abloh meant that only today’s hyper-available, runway-saturated streetwear is dead. A new, authentic take on the movement that is reunited once again with its roots is likely to live on.
