Backstage before Kith’s Fall 2019 show, founder Ronnie Fieg was keen to talk through the finer details of all 95 of his runway looks. But equal with discussing the waxed nylon puffers and the many collaborations within the show—Disney, Rhude, MISBHV, Adidas Terrex, Pendleton, Russell, and Vogue—Fieg was concerned about a model resting her feet one atop the other. Politely, he approached her to let her know that the suede New Balances were to be modeled with two feet flat on earth. “Those are like the most important shoes in the show,” he demurred afterward, which is saying something. The first 40 looks of the collection did not repeat a shoe once.
Product is crucial to the Kith modus operandi. By owning a retailer with an in-house line, Fieg has the luxury of knowing what sells…and then making it himself. He does this mostly through collaborations, though his own collection of menswear has expanded sizably beyond the jogger pants it started with. Clothes are easily styled the way Fieg or his fans would wear them, and plenty were on display in the front row tonight.
But as the designer himself admits, “The event is equally important as the product.” Inspired by the upcoming opening of Kith’s Paris location and a winter trip to the Amangani Resort in Wyoming, he christened the show Kith Air and used digital video mapping technology to make the interior of Cipriani Downtown appear like the base of the Eiffel Tower, the Sahara desert, and the Swiss Alps. In the end, the NYC skyline rose above the crowd. Above all else, Kith is a New York brand and a testament to New York–style business. Always be closing!
