Off-White has teamed with Isamaya Ffrench to broaden its beauty offerings.
Ffrench has been named the beauty curator of Off-White, the latest in her roster of collaborators. A statement from Off-White cited her “ambition of pushing the brand into new beauty territory with high quality, luxurious products and boundary-breaking, elevated packaging, designed for everybody.”
Ffrench has previously helped several brands enter color cosmetics. She developed Byredo’s first makeup foray with founder Ben Gorham, and has also worked with Burberry and Tom Ford Beauty. Last year, Ffrench launched her namesake line of makeup products, most recently debuting a buzzy collection of phallic lipsticks.
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“It’s such a rare and exciting opportunity to be part of a growing collective of creatives that are pushing new and radical approaches to fashion and beauty,” Ffrench said of her new gig. “One of my most memorable beauty moments was supporting Virgil [Abloh]’s runway vision and I feel so honored to continue creating in celebration of his legacy.”
Though the partnership is new, Andrea Grilli, the brand’s chief executive officer, said it was years in the making. “We’ve always been quite amused by her works, which were completely going beyond any expected or conventional things related to not just fashion,” he said. “At that time, we were in talks to create a beauty division. Our dream is always to create a fashion house with everything direct — beauty, eyewear and fashion. We discussed her two-and-a-half years ago with Virgil, and Virgil loved her.”
Ffrench will “bring the beauty division ahead from a creative standpoint,” Grilli said. “She is also going to be aligned with the direction of the brand, which is led by Ib [Kamara, Off-White’s art and image director].”
Off-White launched beauty last year with a range of fragrances, and Grilli said no categories were off limits. “We see beauty as a no-boundaries division where we can talk to a new audience,” he said. “We believe Isamaya is the perfect one to create community around the brand — not just around fragrances, but around beauty products.”
That division is off to a strong start. “The results have been really impressive because the retention that we have on the product is way more than expected,” Grilli said. “We have returning clients, which means they are happy with the product itself. Isamaya can take it to a new level.”