Ghanaian American creative designer, DJ, and the founder of the Milan-based fashion label Off-White Virgil Abloh has been named has been appointed the new artistic director of Louis Vuitton’s menswear, following the departure last week of Kim Jones, New York Times reports. 

I think of it as kind of the ultimate collaboration. I feel elated, this opportunity to think through what the next chapter of design and luxury will mean at a brand that represents the pinnacle of luxury was always a goal in my wildest dreams. And to show a younger generation that there is no one way anyone in this kind of position has to look is a fantastically modern spirit in which to start.

Abloh said via phone on Sunday to a New York Times rep, adding that he planned to relocate his family to Paris to take the job at the largest brand in the stable of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the world’s largest luxury group.

Abloh, whose own label, Off-White, is one of fashion’s most talked-about breakout brands, is the first designer of colour to hold such a high-profile position. Louis Vuitton is the world’s biggest luxury brand, worth £20.30bn in May 2017. The only other designer of colour at a major brand is Olivier Rousteing, who is creative director of Balmain.

Photo Credit: Getty Images/Darren Gerrish