01-07-2025
Cult of Chavarria
This article originally appeared in Hypebeast Magazine Issue 35: The Wavelength Issue.
Willy Chavarria is the reigning sovereign of American men's dressing—he's taken home the CFDA's Menswear Designer of the Year trophy for two consecutive years—but as he sits down for our conversation, he's fresh off the plane from his Paris Fashion Week debut. 'From a business standpoint, Paris is night and day with American fashion,' the 58-year-old Mexican-American designer says bluntly of his transatlantic venture. 'And I want the business to be huge.'
No one should be surprised that Chavarria, the provocative style purveyor behind a macho suiting revolution and a politically-charged push for LGBTQ+, Latinx, and immigrant representation in fashion (and a fountain of more starry flexes, like Colman Domingo's flowering Met Gala look and the official collection for Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl LIX halftime show), has his sights set on global domination.
The designer's FW25 Paris show, dubbed 'Tarantula,' celebrated his brand's 10th birthday, and before an audience that included Becky G, NLE Choppa, and Gabbriette, it was the pinnacle of a decade's worth of breakthroughs for the label. Inside Paris' American Cathedral, the spectacle was spiked with Chavarria fixtures: his toying with queerness and masculinity (flamboyant velvet blazers), his fashioning the Chicano experience (Sunday Mass suits with pearl rosary beads), his subversive sportswear (a raunchy adidas collaboration), his flirtations with fame (J Balvin's mid-runway performance), and his romantic eye (rosy broaches). The result was just as tantalizing as its eight-legged title.
Chavarria takes his business seriously, but it's abundantly clear that he'll never swap a check for his integrity. 'I'm so honored that I'm able to touch people through my work and that people can enjoy my brand, people can write about my brand, people can feel things through my brand,' he says. 'It's the most beautiful thing I could ever imagine.'
One day at a time, Chavarria is expanding his empire in the name of authenticity.
Hypebeast: What does a day in the life of Willy Chavarria look like right now?
Willy Chavarria: It starts early, it ends late, and it's always a new adventure. I've got a really strong team, and everyone's very dedicated to the work, to outdoing the quality of our last collection, and leveling up every season. It's exciting.
From an outsider's perspective, it's clear that your team is especially connected. Being backstage at a Willy Chavarria show is like watching a family welcome a new baby. What does it take for everything to work for you?
There are a lot of different factors. One of them is a belief that hard work is valuable and that it pays off. Another is loyalty: loyalty to one another and loyalty to the brand philosophy. We've had people start as interns and then join us full-time for years, or we've had friends work with us on a project basis, and we've seen that blossom into so much more. As we grow, we can bring more people into the fold.
Do you have any rituals that keep you and your team focused?
Well, we burn a lot of white sage, and we burn a lot of Palo Santo. That's very much a tradition, and it happens daily. It's about cleansing the air and creating good energy in the studio space. It's very important that we manage the climate to make sure it doesn't turn into chaos. There's a level of consideration that all of the employees have.
I can only imagine the office fumes on the day you received the call from the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode [the governing body for the French fashion industry]. How did Paris Fashion Week enter the picture?
Well, it's a longer process than one might think because you don't just suddenly go to Paris. It's more that Paris has to become familiar with you, and Paris has to want you. We started visiting Paris a year before the show so we could acclimate to the fashion scene there, make appointments with stylists, and get to know the groundwork of Paris — all so we could be invited to show there.
We submitted our application with the Fédération, which is tedious and methodical. You have to show your business numbers and your business growth plan. So when we got the call, not only were we elated that we got invited to Paris, but also that we got the most amazing time slot: 6pm on a Friday.
How much notice did they give you?
That was about two months before the show.
So, after your second consecutive CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year win?
Yes.
How did that second win feel?
It was such a great honor and so encouraging on so many different levels. The fact that I won during the election process really spoke volumes about how we view American fashion. It's the fashion leaders who vote for the CFDA Awards, so it meant that the industry's biggest players saw my portfolio as the strongest, most relevant work in American fashion at the time. It's no secret that all of my work is about promoting human dignity and social justice. It resonated in a way that is quite emotional for me and everybody who sees themselves in my brand.
What is it about your brand that makes people feel so deeply?
There's an authenticity to my brand that is not always easy for larger brands to capture because being truly authentic often means taking many high risks. As a small brand, I can still take those risks, and I haven't really suffered repercussions from them. There are larger brands that can't take a stance on politics because they're afraid to lose customers, but I've only gained customers by sharing my views.
It's wild to hear you call yourself a small brand when you've won American fashion's most-coveted trophy two times over, shown in Paris during one of the most sought-after time slots, and consistently attracted global stars to your front row each season. What do you consider to be a 'large brand,' and is that something that you want your namesake label to become?
It is. It's funny. With fashion, so much of it is perception. There's the way the brand impacts people, and then there's the business side. The two develop together, but the business still has so much room to grow. I want it to be another Tommy Hilfiger or another Gucci. I see it as a house that can grow even long after I'm gone. So while the message is very strong and the business is good, I think about it five years from now and how much larger I want it to be. And if we have another conversation five years from now, I'll still talk about it getting bigger.
I would assume your ongoing adidas collaboration is helping amp up business. How did you approach working with such a mammoth sportswear label?
adidas has always played a role in my life. Whether I saw the kids in my community styling their oversized football jerseys with baggy jeans, or club kids wearing tracksuits for techno parties in my rave culture days, I was always aware of adidas' intense cultural influence. But I hadn't seen adidas really capture the American essence in a while, other than the huge Run-D.M.C. moment in the '80s. I really wanted to tap into that and show this American way of wearing the brand. The collaboration is very much about empowering the people who are wearing these clothes as we go into this next phase of the reality that we're living in. We have to be strong. Masters of our own identities.
There is a toughness to your design ethos, and there's also an endearing tenderness. Watching Valentina Ferrer walk your runway while her partner, J. Balvin, stole the show with an intimate solo performance was quite a loving spectacle. What role does romance play in the Willy Chavarria universe?
Love is at the core of everything the brand stands for. Being Mexican-American, I have this romantic passion where, honestly, everything is romanticized for me. I love love.
And the cast in Paris for FW25 was one of my favorites ever. Like, Indya Moore… She doesn't do stuff right now. So when she reached out and said that she wanted to walk my show, I just melted. I wanted to have a strong trans presence, but I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. I just wanted representation for all types of identities and sexualities.
What do you look for in a Willy Chavarria model?
It's somebody who knows how to endure struggle and then comes out on top and lives to be stronger and more resilient. That usually comes through in their attitude. In that, there's a really positive lesson for others to learn from.
Will we ever see you back on New York's runway?
I'm definitely not saying goodbye to New York. New York is my home. My brand is a New York brand. New York has given me so much love. I will show in New York again for sure.
Now that you're back in town, can you tell me a little bit about what you're working on next?
I'm working on the next season. Well, actually, I have to start working on that. Thanks for reminding me.
How do you start building your mood board for a new season?
It always starts with a conversation about what we're feeling. I'll sit with my team, and we'll talk about the world, the state of affairs, how we feel right now as people, and what we need to say. How do we want to touch people? I'm giving the team a little bit of time before we discuss Spring 2026.
How do you hope your brand evolves?
I want the brand to evolve with the times. I know that sounds cliché, but I want the brand to evolve with the way that, culturally, we evolve as a people.
What will never change about Willy Chavarria?
I want my label to continue to address the changing needs of society, and I will always want to connect with people on a personal and emotional level.
