Cristiano Fagnani was at Nike in 2016 when he first met the late Virgil Abloh. The native of Italy had relocated to Portland, Ore., and worked at the sports brand for 20 years, overseeing its high-profile collaborations.
That included a hook-up with Abloh, who partnered with Nike on The Ten, a reimagined collection of 10 footwear silhouettes that hit the market the following year.
The project helped the two develop a strong connection, one that would ultimately lead Fagnani to leave Nike and join Abloh at his fashion brand, Off-White.
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“I was [prepared] to remain in the U.S. forever,” he said. “I was at Nike for 20 years already. My son was born and raised outside of my country. But Virgil called me and said, ‘Hey, the company is growing faster than expected. It’s based in Italy. You’re Italian. Would you entertain the idea of joining us?’ He was such a source of inspiration and a person I deeply respected, it took me one minute to tell myself, maybe that’s the call I was waiting for.”
He joined Off-White in Milan and has been chief executive officer of the company since 2023.
It’s this history that the CEO drew on when creating 10 x 10: Off-White Icons Reimagined, a project where 10 creatives were tapped to rethink some of the brand’s best-known pieces. The offering includes a bag from Raul Lopez, jeans from Guillermo Andrade, shoes from stylist Veneda Carter, eyewear from photographer Renell Medrano and a sneaker from Kid Cudi.
Starting this week, looks from the product will drop every other month for the next 18 months.
“Off-White is 13 years old now and we wanted to mark a moment to celebrate the legacy of its founder, and reclaim the spirit and the mission of the brand itself,” Fagnani said.
He described Off-White as a brand that sits squarely “in this pivotal place between youth culture, luxury street culture and fashion.” Since its founding, it has been a “platform to navigate, explore and incubate ideas in different fields. I consider Virgil the maestro of an orchestra. He was very, very good at reading the culture, having a vision and inviting people to navigate, explore and incubate ideas in different fields.”
Fagnani said the creatives for 10 x 10 are a diverse group, all of whom “had some level of connection with Off-White, directly or indirectly over the years.” So when approached with the idea, he said, they all were quick to sign on.
Each of the 10 was tasked with giving their distinct take on one specific product or category, he said, pointing to Kid Cudi who reimagined the brand’s Out of Office sneaker, Stephane Ashpool who reworked the varsity jacket and Carter who put her take on the Meteor Metal women’s shoe.
The last creative to sign on was Readymade designer Yuta Hosokawa who redesigned hoodies. “He has a unique way of working on streetwear with the touch, taste and respect you can expect from the Japanese craft and culture.”
Even though the pieces are based on Off-White’s archives, Fagnani stressed that 10 x 10 is “by no means a nostalgia project,” but rather an exercise to “push us forward.”
The pieces will be highlighted in key cities during cultural events important to the Off-White customer. That will include New York during the Frieze art fair in May, Paris during Men’s Fashion Week in June, Miami during Art Basel in December as well as in other cities.
Abloh died at 41 in 2021 after battling a rare, aggressive form of cancer.
But the brand he founded 13 years ago is clearly continuing to evolve under Bluestar Alliance, which bought Off-White in 2024, adding it to a portfolio that also includes Scotch & Soda, Bebe, Elie Tahari and others.
Fagnani admitted what when the sale was announced, there was a lot of angst and a lot of questions.
“But I have to give credit to Bluestar,” he said. “They’ve made an incredible effort to protect the people, the organization, the legacy. We’re exactly the same company, we just changed the legal entity on the trademark.”
The vast majority of the staff has been with Off-White for years and most worked with Abloh. Together, he said, they are “the embodiment of the spirit and culture” of the brand.
Fagnani summed it up this way: “For most of us, it’s not just a job, it’s a choice to be on this journey, adhere to the value of the brand, the legacy of Virgil and build a brand that will inspire an entire generation.”
