Detroit Vs. Everybody partners with Gucci for $390 T-shirt collection to benefit local nonprofits

Detroit Vs. Everybody partners with Gucci for $390 T-shirt collection to benefit local nonprofits

click to enlarge Alyson Williams

Tommey Walker at his Detroit vs. Everybody shop in Eastern Market.

A local T-shirt and lifestyle brand is getting a major boost from an international luxury clothing and accessory empire, all in the name of “everybody.”Tommey Walker, founder of clothing brand Detroit Vs. Everybody, has partnered with Gucci for a run of limited-edition T-shirts that expand the iconic Detroit brand to 11 U.S. cities as a way to benefit local nonprofits that aim to strengthen and empower communities of color within those cities.“My partnership with Gucci is a dream come true, not just for me and my team, but also for celebrating the city of Detroit’s cultural richness and innovation,” Walker toldSince launching in 2012, Walker’s brand has been a celebration of Detroit’s often overlooked cultural contributions. But the latest Gucci Changemakers collab is an effort to move the brand forward in terms of unity and inclusion, which is why the limited edition collection will offer city-specific tees at Gucci stores in Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.The collection, which was made available on Monday, March 1, has been in the works since 2019 when Walker crossed paths with North American Gucci leaders at an event at Cass Technical High School. The tees don’t stray far from the Vs. Everybody signature black 100% cotton crew neck design, but theybeen updated to feature the Gucci logo running down the back. Detroit Vs. Everybody’s classic tee retails for $34.99 , while the multi-city Italian-made Gucci-fied version retails for a heftier $390. Proceeds go to support local nonprofits within those cities as part of Gucci’s Changemakers initiative. Among the recipients for this year’s Changemakers impact fund winners is Journi , a youth-orientated nonprofit in Detroit that strives to provided resources and equip Detroiters with tech skills.Shirts are currently available for in-store purchase at the Troy Somerset Collection Gucci location . The collection will soon be available for purchase online.

Tommey Walker, Gucci plan line of ‘Vs Everybody’ T-shirts benefiting nonprofits

Other cities featured are Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.

“My partnership with Gucci is a dream come true, not just for me and my team, but also for celebrating the city of Detroit’s cultural richness and innovation,” Walker said in a news release.

The project also includes a “Gucci Vs Everybody” T-shirt available only at the Gucci store at Somerset Collection in Troy.

The shirts combine Gucci’s fabric and materials with the “Vs Everybody” graphic, Gucci said. The Gucci line is made in Italy, the company said.

Detroit-based Design Core and Journi are the local recipients of grants from the Changemakers Impact Fund run by Gucci.

Design Core, housed at the College for Creative Studies, promotes and supports design-based businesses in Detroit. Journi works to build an inclusive technology ecosystem, was selected as the nonprofit partner for the second phase.

Detroit Vs Everybody and Gucci Collaborate on New T-Shirts

Tommey Walker — the founder of Detroit Vs Everybody, a clothing brand that champions hometown pride and the resilience of Detroiters —has teamed up with luxury fashion brand Gucci on a new T-shirt line that celebrates “changemaker” cities across the country.

“My partnership with Gucci is a dream come true, not just for me and my team, but also for celebrating the city of Detroit’s cultural richness and innovation,” says Walker in a press release. “I’ve long admired the creative genius that is [Gucci designer] Alessandro Michele and am honored and humbled that Gucci respects my work. Detroit Vs Everybody and Gucci share the same unifying ethos, to bring people together for a greater good and to transform a feeling into a cultural moment.”

The collaboration is part of the Gucci Changemakers social impact initiative. Launched in 2019, the initiative focuses on inclusion and diversity in the fashion industry and across communities through partnerships in its 11 U.S. Changemaker cities — Detroit, Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.

The line with Walker is the initiative’s first product collaboration. A press release from Gucci says the collection’s Black cotton jersey T-shirts intertwine “Italian craftsmanship and Detroit’s industrialist savoir-faire.” The shirts are made of Gucci’s fabric and raw materials. Walker’s iconic “Vs Everybody” graphic is featured on the front of the shirt with a U.S. changemaker city, and the Gucci logo appears on the back.

The tees retail for $390 and are available at Gucci flagship boutiques in the U.S. Changemaker cities and online. In honor of the collaboration with Walker, a special-edition T-shirt that reads “Gucci Vs Everybody” is available at the Gucci store at the Somerset Collection in Troy.

From the collection, a donation will be made to the 2020 and 2021 Gucci Changemakers North America Impact Fund winners. The fund awards grants to nonprofits in the Changemaker cities that are focused on social impact. In 2020, Design Core in Detroit was named an Impact Fund winner, and this year, Detroit tech nonprofit Journi was a winner.

To coincide with the launch of the collection, Gucci partnered with a Detroit production house to create a video that highlights Walker’s story and other locals (watch the video above). Walker will also appear on Gucci’s podcast channel in a conversation with activist and educator Brittany Packnett.

For more information, visit gucci.com.