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Ervin Latimer on his new brand: ”Clothing needs a deeper purpose to justify its existence”
”Our new collection is not unisex, nor defined as ’menswear’, but rather aimed for anyone who wants to highlight or examine masculinity within themselves,” the praised designer tells.
By JOHAN MAGNUSSON
7 Dec 2021

After graduating from Aalto University, Helsinki, Latimer has had an international career in fashion, working for brands like 1017 Alyx 9SM, and his work is currently on display at Design Museum Helsinki. He’s also written and lectured on the intersections of queer culture, anti-racism, masculinity, and fashion. In January, his new luxury label, named Latimmier, will be launched at Pitti Uomo in Florence.

Studies show that social responsibility is a key factor in the ways millennials and younger generations make consumer decisions. These generations believe in companies that exist for a greater purpose and take clear stands. They also research if companies put their words into action when it comes to social responsibility. These values are laid in the foundations of Latimmier, and in addition to challenging the ways we approach masculinity in fashion, the brand aims to break norms in the practices of the industry. This includes slowing down and implementing a 4-day work week as well as a slower collection cycle.

— The definition of masculinity is narrow. Our new collection is not unisex, nor defined as ‘menswear’, but rather aimed for anyone who wants to highlight or examine masculinity within themselves. Fashion should liberate us, not limit us. We challenge both who can perform masculinity and what kind of clothing can be used to do that. Furthermore, we also expand what Nordic fashion looks like. Our collection features suits and shirts, but also dresses and skirts. Our design language draws from the history of masculine clothing with a contemporary approach and thought-through, high-quality details, he says.

Preview of Laitimmer, launching in January

According to Latimer, for clothing to justify its existence, sustainable materials and design is not enough — it also needs a deeper purpose.

— At the moment the fashion industry seems to lead with either ecological materials, diversity, or a strong design vision, but our objective is to combine all of these in a meaningful way. The objectives of our company are ambitious. There are very few international success stories in Finnish fashion, and therefore there is less courage to invest in our industry. In order to produce our collection after the presentation at Pitti Uomo, we’ve kicked off a crowdfunding campaign. We want to prove that expanding masculinity with clothing is not a niche or a trendy thing that is on the surface only now. Everyone can join us on this journey towards change, he concludes.