The Tamesis
Chalhoub Group [is a] blue chip investors, [with] Expertise in business growth, development, and store opening. Having people like them on my board with whom I can communicate all the details of the company, our goals, and make sure we hit our targets – is exactly what I need to follow my ambitious growth model.
Fashion: You mentioned stores. Can you tell us anything about the Willy Chavarria store?
Oh, I can’t wait. This will be very cool. I wish I could tell you more, but I can’t spoil the surprise. We plan to open one in the next 12 months: the first in New York, the second in Paris, then Los Angeles and Tokyo.
Fashion: I know global expansion is part of the dream, and in addition to Europe, you are also focusing on Asia. How does your Mexican-American style (vatisimo) manifest itself in places like Asia? What was your experience like?
Well, you know the funny thing is my brand was originally founded in Tokyo. I lived in New York and had a little store on Sullivan Street that sold another brand I owned called Palmer Trading Company; I licensed it to Asia, but it was very American. I started a small brand called Willy Chavarria and I just hung a few pieces in the store to see what would happen. Bay Crews from Japan came in, they were a dealer and they answered the phone. So before I was selling to Barneys or anyone in New York, I started selling in Japan.
I think brand messaging is key. It is ultimately about embracing identity, human dignity and the power of love. As cliché as this sounds, it is what it is, and the message resonates very clearly and strongly, especially with everything going on in the world today. This message is exactly what is being conveyed to the people.
When people buy from my brand, they are aligned with that message. It’s not just quality, beauty or color, it’s that they know they are aligning with a message that is bigger than all of us.
Fashion: I’m thinking about it. I think it was September before the last presidential election in the United States, and you were working with the ACLU. I think it’s a very pointed gesture, without being partisan, that you printed a pamphlet about the Constitution of the United States. What are the benefits and risks of incorporating politics into fashion?
I firmly believe that fashion is very political. You are political whether you want it to be or not. That’s the way it is. Like everything we do in life, we are political.
I know many people are timid right now because they are worried about what action may be taken against them if they speak out in support of human rights. But what I’ve found is that from a personal perspective and a business perspective, people want their feelings to be acknowledged, and they want to be connected to information that touches them and allows them to feel what they’re feeling inside and agree with.
