American designer Willy Chavarria on his lifelong love of Dickies

Uniforms and workwear have long been a fascination of California-born designer Willy Chavarria, who worked for stalwart American labels Joe Boxer, American Eagle and Ralph Lauren before beginning his much-acclaimed eponymous label in 2015. Part of the Wallpaper* USA 300, his distinct aesthetic sees him infuse his collections with references to his Mexican-American heritage and the melting pot of cultures he witnesses in his home city of New York.

A new collaboration, released this month, sees Chavarria unite with Dickies – perhaps the United States’ most well-known workwear brand – on a nine-piece capsule collection spanning work shirts, pants and jackets. The designs first featured as part of Chavarria’s S/S 2023 show, which was held at Manhattan’s 1628-founded Marble Collegiate Church and featured dramatic, ecclesiastical silhouettes fused with the designer’s signature oversized riffs on American streetwear.

Willy Chavarria x Dickies

‘I’ve known the wonderful Ann [Richardson], Dickies director of merchandising, for a long time now,’ Chavarria tells Wallpaper* of the roots of the collaboration. ‘We first worked together with my previous company, Palmer Trading [a Manhattan store and creative collective owned by Chavarria which focussed on America-made menswear] on a pair of Dickies jeans. Ann and I have been speaking about a Willy Chavarria x Dickies collection for some time and when I started thinking about the S/S 2023 collection it felt like the perfect time to bring the collaboration to life.‘

Chavarria, who grew up in Fresno, California, remembers buying a pair of Dickies trousers from his local Kmart as a teenager. ‘It’s a brand that I grew up with. I must have been around 12 or 13 when I bought my first pair,’ he says. ‘It’s very special to get to design a collection for a brand that I have grown up wearing and admiring. To me, the most elegant look will always be a clean, pressed pair of Dickies pants worn with a crisp white T-shirt.’

The pieces themselves see Chavarria ‘take the iconic Dickies styles and reinterpret them with a contemporary and artistic touch,‘ he explains. Pieces include long wide-leg tailored shorts and trousers which sit high on the waist, an oversized version of the classic Dickies short-sleeved work shirt, and a Harrington-style jacket. ’The collection first featured in the S/S 2023 collection, which was all about combining bold silhouettes, romantic tailoring and functionality,’ Chavarria describes.

As for what Chavarria thinks he shares with Dickies, he notes a joint ‘admiration for workwear and utilitarian design, inclusivity, functionality, craftsmanship and authenticity. All these elements have remained that the heart of the collaboration and the designs themselves.’

‘[This collection] is a great representation of how Dickies seeks to highlight our heritage, quality workwear products while also championing creative vision,’ adds Richardson. ‘We’re thrilled to work with a style icon like Willy Chavarria to create a collection that highlights our shared passions of authentic style and self-expression.’

The Willy Chavarria x Dickies exclusive capsule is available online at willychavarria.com and dickies.com, as well as in-store at Bergdorf Goodman. 

willychavarria.com