On Island Time With Fashion Label Tier - WWD

Founded in 2014 by Nigeria Ealey (creative director), Esaïe Jean-Simon (finance director), and Victor James (art director), Brooklyn-based fashion label Tier is this month launching its fourth project, “Tier Island.”

“It’s basically our own spin on what Tier would look like if we had our own place, own ecosystem, our own resources… everything. It was that navigation from the ‘we’ve all been home, having to quarantine, stay away from friends and family or travels,’ so this is that escape… we’re bringing you to this whole new experience that’s happy, sunny, lively, adventurous,” Ealey explained. “It’s this hyper-realistic feel.”

A look from Tier. Mark Clennon

Since its inception, the self-funded label has pushed art to the forefront of its designs (each cofounder has an art-based background; the brand’s motto is “Art Never Dies”) with original artwork. For “Tier Island,” they redeveloped their signature script logo into an island shape. Each letter of the island represents four perspectives of the mystical, remote location, correlating to four seasonal ready-to-wear and accessory drops.

“We broke everything into seasons based on the letters. ‘T’ is spring, ‘I’ summer, ‘E’ fall and ‘R’ is winter. Each of them tells a different [story of the island],” said Ealey.

A look from Tier. Mark Clennon

For spring, which will release on the brand’s website on July 16, they designed summer fashions with artwork representing their island’s experiences (travel, amusement attractions, jet-skiing, building sandcastles, etc.) across men’s and women’s. Fall will touch on outdoor adventures and more. The collection, as a whole, pushes beyond the brand’s casual, unisex streetwear signatures into more fashion-forward pieces (novelty knits, a tailored utility dress or body-hugging numbers) alongside the debut of swimwear. The line ranges from $144 to $456 across the 31 styles.