A Closer Look at a Fashion Mystery: Chrome Hearts Dress

A passionate Los Angeles rebel who became a successful American fashion entrepreneur and yet despises the existing quo and the concept of high-end fashion is the protagonist of Chrome Hearts, a story that could serve as the plot of a contemporary Western film. The cult-classic brand has been established for more than three decades, but it is still an IYKYK organization that operates behind closed doors. Chrome Hearts’ early users and their perceptions were very different from what they are now. The hurdles to entry for consuming have accidentally been lowered by mainstream marketing and your favorite hip-hop and rap musician. The amount of saturation necessarily rises when a specialized entity and hype culture are combined. Sadly, the cringe also does. The memes followed suit, just like everything else.

Now that the brand is ridiculed in the same way that the community does VLONE, it can be difficult to take it seriously at times. It’s difficult to avoid all the t-shirts with Horseshoe screen prints and trucker hats with FUCK embroideries no matter where you go, whether it’s online or in your favorite shopping area. However, it’s also challenging to overlook the bizarre products that Chrome Hearts Dress continues to produce and promote through its social media posts and marquee displays. How could a company that is in charge of all the “drip” that these rappers claim to have still produce elegant furniture and jeweler that appeals to a niche market?

Photograph of a biker wearing a leather jacket by Chrome Hearts. Source: The Photographs of Richard Stark

The balance between beautiful artwork for ardent collectors and screen-printed products for the general public is something Chrome Hearts is progressively getting the hang of. Fewer brands have been able to successfully adapt to the current culture and new consumer base than they have. Although Chrome Hearts’ journey has been anything but smooth, one thing is certain: they are here to stay and still couldn’t give a fuck.

We must go back to 1988 in order to completely comprehend the wider picture. The opportunity to costume design a low-budget Tromba horror movie called Chopper Chicks in Zombietown was provided to Richard Stark, a high-end carpenter in Hollywood, California. Chrome Hearts was the working title for the horror comedy when it was first announced, but the production team ultimately chose a different name. Opportunities started to present themselves as the gig went on and Stark’s ideas started to gain popularity among the film crew and their social groups.

Through his fiancée, who starred in the movie about biker girls and zombies, Steve Jones, afterwards known as Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols, instantly struck up a conversation with Stark. Stark noticed that something was developing and linked with his friend John Bowman, a leatherworker, to launch a Los Angeles garage-based motorbike riding equipment business. In the end, Stark would give this company the name Chrome Hearts after the cast and crew had tossed around other names.

They would advance the craftmanship of leather goods while slowly but surely making a name for themselves in the fashion world. To embellish the leather products with sterling-silver motifs, Stark and Bowman would team up with Leonard Campout, a master of sterling-silver jeweler. As rock and punk bands like Motley Cure, Guns N’ Roses, The Rolling Stones, and Aerosmith started requesting customized Chrome Hearts pieces, their wares would take Hollywood and Los Angeles by storm. Because each item would have sterling-silver hardware on the snaps, buttons, zipper pulls, and other details, everyone coveted Chrome Hearts’ leather jackets and slacks. There was no marketing strategy in place; the product’s quality and philosophy spoke for itself. Lenny Krovitz hoped for a because he was aware that Chrome Hearts produced the best leather jackets in the world at the time, he chose a Chrome Hearts item. It was no longer merely a manufacturer of motorcycle riding gear. Chrome Hearts was meant to accomplish more. Stark was genuinely ignorant, though.

Nobody responded when the CFDA knocked on their door and called to present Richard Stark with the 1992 CFDA Accessory Designer of the Year award. They would eventually make touch with Stark, who assured them he would send someone to deliver the honor. The next thing you know, Cher is presenting Richard with the CFDA award as she makes her way down the red carpet while wearing nothing but Chrome Hearts. Richard started to get more and more calls and messages about his business after the CFDA award, but one in particular struck out as the most significant. Chrome Heart pieces were chosen by Comma des Garcons designer Rei Kawakubo to display for a season in her Aoyama flagship.

This would not only introduce Chrome Hearts Hoodie to a completely new market on a global scale, but it would also unleash a wave of Asian fashion buyers. Star customers started contacting Chrome Hearts, the Asian market was booming, and they even started stocking up at upscale stores like Maxfield. But the Chrome Hearts journey experienced its first significant hiccup two years after winning the CFDA award when the trio of founders fell out and decided to dissolve in 1994 after Richard bought them out of the company. Longtime customer Laurie Lynn, who is also Richard Stark’s wife, would join the company and aid in expanding Chrome Hearts internationally and digitally.