LONDON — Kim Jones kicked off the tour of Dior men’s capsule collection with cult label Denim Tears in London at Phonica Records, a vinyl specialist in Soho that has been utilized by the likes of Rimowa and Lacoste within the last yr. 

Past the stacks of records and down the steps within the shabby store, an empty space is bubbling up with white transparent domes that spell out “Dior Tears” within the French luxury house’s Nicolas Cochin font and decorated with florals from artist Azuma Makoto, who focuses on botanical art.

The London pop-up is the just one happening in Europe, allowing Dior clients to buy the pieces before it reaches stores on Thursday. The pop-up ends on Thursday and can then be moving to Tokyo, Seoul and Shanghai for the remainder of the month.

“London obviously holds a special place for me, it’s the house of menswear and it’s such a superb place to have a look at fashion. I’m very comfortable to launch the Dior Tears capsule collection here in London, which is my home, with my friends and all of the people who are vital to me,” Jones told WWD.

Will Poulter, Freddy Carter, AJ Tracey and Rish Shah attended to assist have a good time the gathering.

The cocktail reception was a chance for friends and clients of the brand to witness what Jones and Tremaine Emory, founding father of Denim Tears and artistic director of sportswear label Supreme, had cooked up, with a more in-depth inspection of the gathering that was unveiled last December with a presentation on the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Big spending Dior customers already had their likelihood to place of their pre-orders earlier within the yr, but some still arrived at Phonica Records for add ons.

“Tremaine has been my friend since 2005 — we’ve at all times talked about doing a project together. As we were showing on the African continent and Africa is something present in his work, I believed it will be good to ask him to work on a set mixing Dior and Denim Tears,” said Jones in regards to the collaboration.

“Every time I work with someone, I give them an idea of what we want but then respect their vision to do what they wish to do, that’s the key of an awesome collaboration. The vital thing is to give you the option to at all times give value to their contribution without dropping it in, but relatively integrating it into the gathering,” he added.

Nearly every part in the shop was Dior, from the homeware to the books on the shelves, except for the furniture. A musical session took place as waiters handed out chilled cocktails, Champagne and water during London’s humid weather.

Jones said he feels a responsibility “as someone who has done well” to see the following generation grow and to provide them a likelihood.

“I speak to a lot of them, I give them advice and help them, and I give them money and do whatever I can to maintain them going. I also like to see things from their perspective, which could be very inspiring for me,” he said.

Denim Tears, which has collaborated with brands including Levi’s, Ugg, Converse and Champion, is thought for telling stories in regards to the African diaspora, and promoting racial justice and cultural activism through its designs, resembling its signature cotton wreath motif.

The Tyson Beckford sweater, a reinterpretation of the 1989 Ralph Lauren sweater that replaces the unique American flag with the African American flag created by artist David Hammons, was one in every of several Denim Tears designs featured within the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute recent “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion” exhibition. 

“Denim Tears speaks in regards to the plight and the glory of Black culture. Every collection varies, sometimes it celebrates Alvin Ailey and American greats, sometimes it discusses slavery. It’s not at all times negative things we’ve been through as a people, sometimes it’s the positive. All of it relies on the story I would like to inform,” Emory said in an interview last yr.