ON A DREARY FEBRUARY DAY IN NEW York City, the Queens-based fashion designer Telfar Clemens is 3,000 miles away, sitting in a thatched-roof bungalow overlooking a beach in the Mexican resort town of Puerto Escondido. Beside him, his business partner and co-creative director, Babak Radboy, is wearing a faded orange tee and round wire glasses, rolling a cigarette. Clemens himself is shirtless, wearing a gold necklace and black shorts, both emblazoned with his brand's logo, a T encircled by a C.
The pair look cozy together. "My Wikipedia page used to say that Babak and I were a couple, and that we had a son together," Clemens recalls, laughing. (Radboy is actually married to Telfar's stylist, Avena Gallagher, and their 8-year-old son, Malcolm, sits behind him playing a video game.) "I just believe in never working with anyone I don't like."
Telfar and Radboy hopped on a plane to Mexico after shooting their Spring/Summer 2023 collection for a weeklong escape from the frenetic pace of their past couple years. Telfar's logo-embossed tote bags, priced between $150 and $258, were the most-searched accessory of the pandemic, according to shopping app Lyst. They've been spotted on everyone from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to Megan Thee Stallion; Beyoncé gave them a shout-out on her 2022 album, Renaissance, saying that she'd put her Hermès Birkin in storage in favor of a Telfar status bag.
This story is from the Spring 2023 edition of Fast Company.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the Spring 2023 edition of Fast Company.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
THE NEW RULES OF BUSINESS TRAVEL
In the era of hybrid teams, everyone is a road warrior-not just sales teams and C-suite execs. It's part of why business travel spending is expected to finally reach, and perhaps surpass, pre-pandemic levels by the end of the year, according to Deloitte. But, as with everything, work trips are not what they were in 2019. From airlines to banks, companies are finding new ways to make business travel easier-and even a little fun.
INTELLIGENT IMPACT
BUSINESS LUMINARIES SHARE HOW AI CAN INTERSECT WITH SOCIAL MISSION.
REDDIT'S REVENGE
IN AN ERA OF AI UPHEAVAL. THE CACOPHONOUS SOCIAL HUB EMERGES AS THE HUMAN-DRIVEN INTERNET'S LAST GREAT HOPE.
SO MANY WAYS TO LOSE
In the Ozempic era, Weight-Watchers is remaking itself to be something for everyone meal-plan program and a tele-health prescription service. But have consumers already lost their appetite?
10/10 - THE 10 MOST INNOVATIVE PEOPLE OF THE LAST 10 YEARS
In honor of Fast Company's 10th Innovation Festival in September, we identified 10 industrious leaders whose groundbreaking efforts defined the past decade in business. We spoke to them about their extraordinary achievements in tech, medicine, entertainment, and more. And we explored how the impact of their work has withstood passing fads, various presidential administrations, a pandemic, and many, many quarterly reports.
The Mysterious Reappearance of the Reggie Bar
How a beloved 1970s candy got called back up to the major leagues.
Gabriella Khalil
Gabriella Khalil, creative director, answers our career questionnaire.
The Fast and the Furious
High prices at McDonald's, Taco Bell, and other chains are sparking consumer revolt.
Lost in Truncation
Lost in Truncation Generative AI was supposed to unleash our creativity. Instead, it became our cultural trash compactor. Welcome to the age of summarization.
Campus Radicals
Welcome to UATX, Austin's new well-funded and controversial anti-woke university.
