Designer Shayne Oliver has stepped away from design duties at Hood By Air, the influential New York brand he founded in 2006, though he remains a shareholder in the label.
Hood By Air unleashed a fierce new look in fashion: an unruly collision of queer, club-kid, hip-hop and high-fashion sensibilities. The label has been credited with pioneering luxury streetwear and was an early champion of inclusivity, but struggled to find commercial traction after suffering from internal conflict and was put on pause in 2017.
In 2020, Hood By Air mounted a comeback effort with business partner Edison Chen, a Hong Kong pop star turned streetwear entrepreneur. But by 2022, its heavy emphasis on accessible streetwear staples had begun to rub Oliver the wrong way. “Focusing solely on T-shirts was not in line with my vision; I appreciate things that are highly accessible, but I also value high-end concepts,” Oliver told BoF. Edison Chen did not respond to a request for comment.
Oliver quietly departed his design duties at Hood By Air last summer, though he remains a partner in the business. In October, he moved from New York to Berlin in search of a fresh start and now plans to focus on a constellation of projects under the nascent Shayne Oliver Group, a mini-“corporation” with 10 team members based in Berlin, Paris and Miami.
Presently Shayne Oliver Group includes Anonymous Club, a multidisciplinary creative studio launched two years ago, which has since released a line of club-ready clothing; As Seen by Shayne Oliver (A.S.S.O), a collection of elevated basics set to debut this autumn; and Shayne Oliver, a high-end ready-to-wear line set to launch in early 2024.
Affa Osman, a former model agent and casting director for German fashion label GmbH, is overseeing branding and communications, while Zacharri Lobo, who worked with Oliver at Hood By Air from 2015 to 2017, is managing the commercial rollout. The group will manufacture in Italy, Portugal and China. Luca Benini’s Slam Jam has signed on as a distribution partner.
Oliver is also making a foray into art. In August, the Shayne Oliver Group will open a three-month exhibition entitled “Mall of Anonymous” at Berlin’s Schinkel Pavillon, where Oliver’s designs will be showcased alongside artwork created by Oliver and others.
For now, the Shayne Oliver Group remains self-funded. “I just have to do it at my own pace, and I’m very comfortable with that, and that’s really where my head is at,” said Oliver.
