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New York designer Willy Chavarria, who, in 2024, decamped from New York for the Paris runways, has taken the next step in establishing his brand as a global player by securing minority investment from Middle Eastern luxury retail operator Chalhoub Group. The total investment was not disclosed.
Chavarria launched his eponymous brand in 2015, after working at New York brands including Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein, and has since grown the Willy Chavarria label into an emerging powerhouse. The Chalhoub investment isn’t Chavarria’s first capital injection. In 2024, the designer secured funding from FAE Fashion Ventures, the investment arm of entertainment company First Access Entertainment (FAE). It was not announced at the time.
“The timing of our partnerships with FAE Group and later with Chalhoub Group was both strategic and necessary. FAE and Chalhoub Group played important roles in our ability to scale global consumer reach and revenue growth,” Chavarria says. “Key priorities are strengthening our core functions and infrastructure to support accelerated revenue growth.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Chalhoub Group onto the board of Willy Chavarria to add their expertise in scaling growth businesses,” Sarah Stennett, co-founder of FAE Fashion Ventures, said in a statement. “The fusion of retail, brand experience, and cultural expression across all areas of the arts will establish a blueprint for future-facing fashion brands.”
Nor is it Chalhoub Group’s first investment. The group, which is the largest retail operator in the Middle East and works with more than 300 international brands in the region, has previously invested in ventures including UK-based personal shopping and styling platform Threads Styling in 2022 and French tableware brand Christofle back in 2017, as well as founding its own brands, including Level Shoes. It has also partnered with companies such as eyewear group EssilorLuxottica JV and OTB Group (which owns Jil Sander, Maison Margiela and Marni) to expand their brand presence in the Gulf region.
The Chalhoub Group (and FAE) investment isn’t just about expanding Chavarria’s reach in the Middle East. Instead, goals include amping up the brand’s global retail presence with expansion into key markets, including Europe and Asia; the support of a host of new projects; and helping to realise Chavarria’s long-term vision.
Chavarria on the set of his BTS shoot with Vogue Business ahead of his last New York Fashion Week show in 2024.
Photo: Alyssa Greenberg
