Pharrell Williams commenced Men’s Paris Fashion Week with a streetwear-heavy show for Louis Vuitton.
The brand’s creative director, 51, designed the collection with his old friend and artistic director of Kenzo, Nigo.
Williams had in fact advised Louis Vuitton to hire Nigo as creative director of Louis Vuitton back in 2023, before the French fashion house offered it to the musician himself, instead.
“Pharrell is the best choice for Vuitton,” Nigo had said, “Pharrell is an artist, while I am an engineer.”
The show explored ‘streetwear and dandyism’ (as relayed in the show notes) and undoubtedly reinforced LVMH’s commitment to streetwear’s cultural significance.
As the market for streetwear continues to grow, projected to reach $637 billion by 2032, the show firmly fixed Louis Vuitton as the leader of shaping its future.
The designers’ 25-year friendship was celebrated with a streetwear-heavy collection bursting with Y2K accents, pops of colour and Japanese motifs.
The show paid homage to when Nigo and Williams first met in the early 2000s, before a trip to Japan, when they first began collaborating.
The idea for the men’s fall/winter 2025/26 collection was cooked up during Williams’ most recent visit to Japan to see Nigo.
During the trip, the pair went fishing and unexpectedly caught a lobster, which is why the crustacean become this season’s motif – attached to bags and stitched on clothes.
The show featured 85 looks – including Williams and Nigo’s end cameo – showcasing everything from trucker jackets to washed denim.
The collection sprung street-style back into the echelons of high fashion.
While Milan’s Fashion Week focused on faux fur, rugged masculinity and old-school glamour; Paris has taken a sharp U-turn, offering up a more relaxed and fun assortment for fashion enthusiasts.
The designs were a signal of the pair’s friendship, not only through their playfulness, but through their tailoring.
The rapid alternating between Noughties streetwear and 2020 tailoring showed the timespan of the designer’s friendship.
Nigo’s love of functional workwear was showcased through Japanese fireman’s jacket patterns and trucker silhouettes, while Williams brought an East Coast-flare, through beanies, pops of pink and washed denim.
The collection explored and emphasised duality throughout.
From wool overcoats to varsity jackets; and loafers to keychain flip phones: the designers balanced both old and new while equally indulging in streetwear and tailored luxury.
At the end of the show, a LV chest was illuminated showing a mound of clothing and collectibles from both Williams and Nigo’s archives.
Soon the pieces will go on sale on the Joopiter.com auction platform.
“Pharrell and I are both creators, but at the same time, we are also consumers,” said Nigo of the initiative.
