Kith is, in a word, impressive. Ronnie Fieg’s burgeoning label has blown up over the past few years in terms of credibility, popularity, revenue, and celebrity and industry clout. Ask any style-aware kid under 30 if she or he knows what Kith is: Odds are, they’ll say yes. The brand is a little bit Supreme on steroids, a little bit Vetements for perhaps not quite such deep pockets, and a lot of bits something entirely its own—a collaboration factory—and hard to completely categorize, because of how full-court press Fieg is in terms of linkups and drops and fueling the flames of the hype. That hype has not shown any signs of sputtering.
Fieg only shows once a year, presenting womenswear and menswear in tandem, and he emphasizes that nothing is linked to traditional fashion seasons. Tonight, he revealed a four-part performance: Kith’s own namesake line; a dedicated capsule collection with Tommy Hilfiger (Hilfiger’s wife, Dee, mentioned that they were just off of a flight from Shanghai, where Hilfiger held his own runway show on September 4); a dedicated capsule collection with Greg Lauren; and a dedicated capsule collection with none other than the house of Versace. For each ostensible “chapter,” the bleachers, holding an audience that included Justin Bieber, Alexandre Arnault, 2 Chainz, Heron Preston, and more, moved down the length of the Brooklyn Navy Yard’s expansive Duggal Greenhouse. “It’s about rethinking the fashion show,” said Fieg beforehand. “You have to make it entertaining—but, that doesn’t work unless the product is on that same level of engagement.”
For the most part, said product was equal to the enjoyment of the spectacle. (But with one caveat, of which, more in a moment.) Within Kith’s own line, there too were collaborations—ongoing, like with Bergdorf Goodman and Columbia, and fresh, like with Mastermind Japan—though Fieg noted that this was his most “aesthetically thought of” collection to date. That sentiment was evinced with strong tailored overcoats and leather jackets—a welcome move away from the merch universe into something anchored with more of a sense of design.
The Hilfiger section had the brand’s new ambassador Hailey Baldwin open in a color-blocked shirt and tie with cropped khaki pants, all-over embroidered with the Tommy Hilfiger griffin crest. The look was a highlight, as were remakes of vintage flag polos and ruched-waist parkas. “When I was a kid, Tommy was all I knew. He was who I wanted to be,” said Fieg.
The designer Greg Lauren is famous for splicing-and-dicing military garb with denim, and for his portion, there wasn’t much that didn’t look like Greg Lauren as-is, bar some doctored rugby tops with K I T and H applied from the front to the back. But for fans of Lauren’s mash-ups, there was plenty to satiate.
And finally, the show’s big bang: Versace. Somehow, Fieg convinced Donatella Versace to let him put Kith’s typeface over the famous house Medusa. At this point, why not? Bella Hadid exited first in baroquely patterned bike shorts and a cropped puffer. Lucky Blue Smith returned to the catwalk in a gothically graphic blazer. The best pieces here were, arguably, the white track jackets that spelled out Versace and Kith in repetition, in bars. Cue the queues.
Was it a success? Yes, but to return to that above-mentioned caveat: Walking away, it was hard not to feel just a little bit of collaboration . . . fatigue. Collaborations aren’t going away—they were a trend that became a mainstay. They work and will still work. But as time passes and exposure grows and appetites shift, one might hope for a bit more nuance and specificity when it comes to partnerships. Something about some of Kith feels too blatantly convenient—done for the sake of simply doing it. That said, a Versace and Kith logo combo is a guaranteed no-brainer (especially when produced with quality in mind, as was the case here—to note, these pieces will arrive at Versace price points).
If all of this remains Kith’s m.o., the challenge is how to reinvent the collaboration game. Advance it. Tamper with it. Reveal something new by ideas, not by names in the stable. Let’s see what Fieg has in store a year from now.
(edited)
