Veteran menswear designer John Varvatos is reinventing his eight-month-old brand, OTD, a unisex clothing line based in New York and Los Angeles.
“When I started this, it was new,” says Varvatos. the hollywood reporter About the beginning of OTD. “I really felt like I had a new story. I wanted to reinvent myself. It was around this time during COVID that I had this flash. I had this story that I was kidding, which is this brand. “
OTD stands for “On This Day” and its collections include clothing, jewelry, shoes and accessories for all genres. With its flagship store located in downtown Soho, New York, the unisex line has found a second home in Los Angeles on West Hollywood’s iconic Sunset Strip, in the same space that previously housed H&M. It is the latest in Varvatos’ ongoing journey to complete his business ventures. From his own record label to his tequila brand Villa One (which he started with Nick Jonas), Varvatos no longer just focuses on menswear. This summer, Varvatos and Jonas opened a tequila bar on the Las Vegas Strip to promote their Villa One brand.
As for OTD, the brand is a post-designer fashion company after its menswear line filed for bankruptcy in 2020 following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This time, OTD includes styles for women, men and unisex. As the name suggests, customers are encouraged to use fashion and personal style to write their own ‘today’ story, to live in the moment, every day.
“Whatever the word is, I don’t really care,” Varavtos says of the difference between men’s and women’s clothing. “All I know is that when people walk into a store, they only look at the clothes. They don’t define whether it’s a boy’s job or a girl’s job. So, you know, we don’t want to put that on them.” Aside from the size differences of some pieces, the designer says most of OTD’s collections are “pretty fluid.”
He continues: “The unisex part is the fun part because you don’t have to explain it to people, they just understand. Girls meet, boys meet. It’s a part of many people’s lives in their wardrobe today.”
John Varvatos flagship store exterior
Courtesy of Noël Kleinman
Interior of John Varvatos flagship store
Courtesy of Noël Kleinman
The idea for On This Day came from a specific message from Facebook, in which the platform shows users memories of previous posts of each day over the years. On a Facebook news feed, the message read: “On this day.”
“I used to have these things on my Facebook. And I would say today, April 25, 2017,” explains Varvatos. “It made me think about celebrating the big moments. And that was it. Somehow, his algorithms determined that this was something special, or that being with people is something special. “
With OTD, Varvatos created an elevated brand that still works, designed to be elegant or casual for every individual. For women, blazers, oversized knits and jumpsuits bring a luxurious approach to androgyny. For both men and women, the fall collection featured trendy sportswear along with cozy knits, sweaters and coats that fit the ‘seasonal wear’ category. There are plenty of sports-inspired pieces, from French hoodies to hockey jerseys and basketball tank tops, all designed for versatility that can be transformed into day and night wear. There is also an element of sustainability, with some clothing made from recycled plastic bottle material.
The famous designer pointed to pop culture as another major influence on the essence of OTD. “You go to an NBA game today and it’s like a runway parade,” he says. “When you look at who’s in the audience, who’s in the front row. Contemporary art has also become a big part of our culture. I wanted to be inspired by those things. “
Models by John Varvatos
Courtesy of OTD
Models by John Varvatos
Courtesy of OTD
In the future, Varvatos hopes to open two or three more OTD stores this fall, in addition to the temporary stores. “The pop-ups were a lot of fun and not difficult at all,” says the New York-based designer. “It takes six months to build a store. You can open a popup in two weeks. It’s fun, you know?”
But when it comes to the future, Varvatos is struggling to make his business a success. “I’m not trying to repeat myself,” says the designer. “I’m really trying to do something new and inspiring for myself and my team that we can be successful with, you know? Ultimately, you want to be successful. I wish it was just for fun, but it can’t be just for fun.”
OTD is located at 8580 Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
