The Chalhoub Group, the leading creator and curator of luxury experiences in the Middle East, has announced a strategic investment in Willy Chavarria, the acclaimed New York-based fashion house, celebrated for its bold aesthetic, cultural storytelling, and inclusive vision of modern luxury. The investment—made in partnership with FAE Fashion Ventures—marks a defining moment for both entities, bringing together Chalhoub’s deep retail expertise and Chavarria’s growing influence as one of fashion’s most distinctive voices.
For over seventy years, Chalhoub Group has helped shape the luxury landscape of the Middle East through partnerships with more than 400 global brands across fashion, beauty, and lifestyle. Today, its ambitions reach far beyond distribution. With a strong focus on brand ownership and investment, the Group is charting a path that blends commercial acumen with cultural innovation, an evolution that this latest move underscores.
A partnership of shared values and global vision
Founded in 2015 by Willy Chavarria and David Ramirez, the namesake label has built a reputation for marrying sharp tailoring with socially conscious narratives that explore identity, power, and belonging. Chavarria’s collections—recently showcased at Paris Fashion Week—reflect a distinctly humanist approach to design, one that resonates across communities and continents.
The collaboration with Chalhoub Group and FAE Fashion Ventures is designed to accelerate the brand’s global expansion, particularly across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, while deepening its capacity for creative experimentation and long-term brand building. The investment aligns with Chalhoub Group’s strategy of supporting emerging luxury brands that combine cultural relevance with commercial potential.
“Willy Chavarria is a designer who represents the evolving face of luxury, rooted in culture, identity, and community,” said Zahra Kassem-Lakha, Chief Investment Officer at Chalhoub Group. Our partnership is grounded in a shared ambition to support brands with strong values and distinctive voices. We believe Willy’s creative vision and powerful storytelling are reshaping the fashion landscape globally.”
Scaling creativity with strategic support
Since joining forces with FAE Fashion Ventures in 2024, the Willy Chavarria brand has tripled its number of retail partners, forged high-impact collaborations with Adidas, Don Julio, and Tinder, and established itself as a leader in culturally engaged fashion. The Chalhoub Group investment adds a new dimension; one rooted in operational excellence and international market access.
With over 950 stores and an expansive omnichannel infrastructure across eight countries, Chalhoub Group brings the scale and know-how to help translate Chavarria’s creative vision into a sustained global business. Beyond retail, the Group’s innovation hub, The Greenhouse, serves as an incubator for emerging talent and next-generation business models, reflecting a broader commitment to building the future of luxury through partnerships and purpose.
This partnership also aligns with Chalhoub’s Vision 2033, the Group’s long-term strategy to evolve from a regional retailer into an international luxury brand builder, one that bridges cultures, nurtures creativity, and inspires the next generation of consumers.
A platform for cultural impact
For Willy Chavarria, the partnership is about amplifying a message. The designer’s work has long celebrated inclusivity and community, using fashion as a lens through which to challenge stereotypes and reflect shared human values. His recognition as Men’s Designer of the Year at the WWD Honors 2025 underscored that cultural impact and commercial success are no longer mutually exclusive in fashion’s new paradigm.
As Sarah Stennett, Co-Founder of FAE Fashion Ventures, put it: “The fusion of retail, brand experience, and cultural expression across all areas of the arts will establish a blueprint for future-facing fashion brands.”
Together, Chalhoub Group, FAE Fashion Ventures, and Willy Chavarria are crafting a model that sees culture not as a marketing tool but as a growth engine, proving that purpose-driven fashion can thrive in the global luxury marketplace.
What does this mean for Chalhoub Group
For Chalhoub Group, this investment is a signal of strategic intent. As the Group deepens its shift from distributor to brand owner and global investor, partnerships like this one illustrate how it is redefining what it means to be a luxury powerhouse in the 21st century.
Viewed through a strategic lens, this is a long-term move: an investment in cultural equity as much as commercial growth. By backing a designer whose voice resonates with new generations, Chalhoub Group positions itself at the intersection of creativity, diversity, and innovation, qualities increasingly central to the future of luxury.
The decision also complements Chalhoub’s broader transformation strategy, which emphasizes sustainability, digital innovation, and human-centric leadership. It reflects an understanding that the next phase of growth in luxury will be driven not only by heritage brands, but by emerging creators capable of connecting emotional authenticity with global scale.
Chalhoub Group’s strategic partnership with Willy Chavarria demonstrates how a legacy institution can evolve with purpose, while championing creativity that bridges worlds, and investing in stories that redefine luxury for a global audience.
