Building Tyler the Creator's Luxury Empire
Cultivating a new generation of luxury through music
Very rarely, a style figure so prolific comes around that their influence can be tangibly seen across wider culture. From James Dean’s effortless Hollywood style to JFK’s presidential ivy look, certain ensembles are etched into the menswear canon for eternity. Seldom do these style icons monetize their influence successfully. In an era of copious, uninspired celebrity brands, authenticity and originality are now more important than ever. Enter Tyler the Creator, the grammy winning artist, symbol of youth, and global tastemaker. Tyler is now a sartorial legend that taught us that it’s okay to wear long white socks with loafers and even pair Cartier with Supreme. While his style is highly refined and so uniquely himself, what makes Tyler so special and approachable is the evolution of his style just like the rest of us. It’s almost like he is maturing with us and that makes his perspective so much more valid. In the early 2000s, he was the archetypal LA skater wearing Supreme box logos and getting into trouble. His music matured into a more melodic sound over the years as did his style, swapping sneakers for loafers and hoodies for crochet vests. He single handedly gave menswear a fun, relevant sensibility. You can surely buy a pair of Gucci loafers and pair it with a Supreme sweater to try to achieve the same look, but something was still missing. Tyler’s use of color, texture, and silhouette was so unique that it was very hard to replicate and he saw this as a valid market opportunity to create something truly authentic and new. From his launch of the 2011 skater brand Golf Wang to his luxury endeavors like Le Fleur’s fragrances and elevated knitwear, Tyler is a masterclass in an effective celebrity brand strategy.
In 2007, rap supergroup Odd Future featuring rap icons like Tyler the Creator, Frank Ocean, Earl Sweatshirt, and more was formed. Their sound was very unique featuring gritty beats and heavy bass along with highly animated vocals. Their music combined hip hop artistry with elements of classic punk rock and they quickly gained a loyal following. While most of them would spin off and enjoy very successful individual careers, the legacy of Odd Future was prevalent in Tyler’s career. Odd Future launched an eponymous mass market clothing line that instantly gained cult status. In parallel, Tyler also launched the Golf Wang label around this time in 2011. Golf Wang was meant to be a fun skate brand that grew into a streetwear company sold at skate stores like Zumiez. Golf Wang became a symbol of nostalgic youth. Overtime, Tyler found a more melodic, less angsty sound with the releases of Flower Boy and Igor and his style scaled along with it. As Tyler’s music became more sophisticated, so did his image. The media discovered his penchant for rare Cartier watches, elaborate furs, and exotic cars. Suddenly, the rap icon showed us that luxury doesn’t have to be stuffy and can be cool.Â
In 2016, Tyler launched a collaborative Converse shoe under the moniker ‘GOLF le FLEUR*.’ This was the birth of Tyler’s upscale clothing line. Introducing a luxury label with an accessible sneaker is a strong move, as it provided a teaser of what’s to come and allowed people to buy into the Golf Le Fleur lifestyle, even if they didn’t want to purchase the more expensive pieces. Tyler now had a hold on both the mass-market clothing market with Golf Wang and caught the eye of major fashion houses with Golf Le Fleur. Golf Le Fleur was tangibly different from anything we’d seen before. It featured the classic colorways that we began to associate with Tyler like pastels mixed with earth tones in high quality garments. The unique textures and chain stitching coupled with the limited inventory allowed the brand to compete with brands like Bode. Upon the release of the highly revered album Call Me if You Get Lost in 2021, Tyler’s design language crystallized and became clearer than ever. The Golf Le Fleur look became an ecosystem and a way of design thinking. Major brands like Lacoste and Globe Trotter noticed this and collaborated with Tyler on releases. The result was highly successful collaborations that take heritage looks and provide a uniquely Tyler spin on it. For Lacoste, Tyler provided unique textures and pastel colors to create a new fresh perspective on classic prep. Golf Le Fleur’s collaborative offerings span luggage, clothing, and even fragrance though none of it seems like a cash grab at all because of the elaborate, art-forward campaigns that align with Tyler’s ethos. If you dive deeper into his lyrics, you can see his love for self care which make it seem like a wellness line would be a great addition to the lineup.
Outside of his own creative endeavors, Tyler has become almost synonymous with Cartier. The above photo shows Tyler’s unfathomably impressive Cartier collection. The collection features some of the rarest watches in the entire world, including the Cartier Crash, one of which sold for $1.65MM at Sothebys last year. You don’t see the iced out diamond faces you may associate with rappers, they are just very clean, classy timepieces, showing that once again, Tyler can completely flip a narrative. Tyler has been central to the surge of Gen-Z interest in Cartier and watches as a whole. At this crucial inflection point in menswear, we look to tastemakers like Tyler to infuse art and music into luxury, creating a new market for fresh interpretations of heritage and prep designs.
