New chief creative officer for Calvin Klein and all around fashion design savant Raf Simons sat down with GQ Style for a lengthy interview recently, and at one point the topic of new designers came up. The interviewer specifically called out Virgil Abloh (close friend of Kanye West)’s brand Off-White as a brand that’s connecting with the youth. In response to what new brands are inspiring Simons, he responds bluntly, “Not Off-White.”
Damn that’s cold. The famed designer hedges his statement by saying “he’s a sweet guy,” but the damage has been done. Simons knows he’s not playing nice in the world of fashion politics, but for a guy of his stature he just gives no fucks.
The quote even prompted A$AP Rocky to tweet that, “I BARELY WEAR OFF WHITE BUT I FEEL BAD FOR VIRGIL,” also calling Raf Simons “OUR FASHION GOD” in the same tweet. Virgil Abloh is a friend of the A$AP Mob, frequently appearing at VLONE events (including the one that ended in a fight with Ian Connor). However, Rocky subtly distancing himself from the brand can only be a bad thing for Off-White.
Is it RIP time for Virgil Abloh’s Off-White brand or can he recover from what is probably the most gentle ether of all time?
[via GQ Style]
