Matthew M. Williams Joins Oakley as Creative Director of Apparel, Footwear, Accessories

Matthew M. Williams, founder of 1017 ALYX 9SM and former creative director at Givenchy, has been named Creative Director of Apparel, Footwear and Accessories at Oakley. The company confirmed the appointment on March 26, 2026, placing Williams at the helm of the brand's AFA divisions with a mandate to push Oakley toward a hybrid performance-meets-lifestyle direction, in close collaboration with Travis Scott, who serves as the brand's Chief Visionary Officer.

Williams' remit covers the full breadth of Oakley's non-eyewear product output: apparel, footwear, and accessories. The brand stated that under his direction, the AFA division will present both performance-driven and lifestyle collections, with product innovation prioritized across all categories. Parent company EssilorLuxottica described Williams' creative direction as one that will lean heavily into Oakley's heritage, sports performance, and technological advancements. Oakley's own press materials cited his "deep expertise rooted in technical and design innovation through advanced materiality, performance, functionality and form."

Caio Amato, Global President of Oakley, framed the hire in terms that reach well beyond aesthetics: "Matthew brings in his belt a lot of knowledge, not only in design: He understands about the business landscape. He understands about the cultural nuances between different countries all over the world. He can talk with the same energy and passion about design as he can talk about distribution, customers and as well as operations [...]"

For Williams, the appointment carries genuine personal resonance. Born in Chicago and raised in California, he has cited Oakley as a constant presence throughout his youth. "I said yes immediately because there's just so much potential for the brand and a rich history that's really authentic to my background," he said. On the collaboration with Scott, Williams added: "Oakley has such a rich heritage, with history rooted in both performance sports and global culture. I am honored to join the company and look forward to working together with Travis and all Oakley teams to guide the brand into a new era."

The hire comes after Williams' exit from Givenchy, where he served as creative director, with various reports placing his departure between late 2023 and early 2024. Before that tenure, Williams built 1017 ALYX 9SM into one of the decade's most referenced labels through a signature vocabulary of industrial construction, utilitarian hardware, and material-driven design. That track record extends to collaborations with Nike, Moncler, Dior Homme, and Vans, each demonstrating his ability to work within an established brand's DNA while recalibrating it toward contemporary culture.

That particular skill set reads as deliberately chosen for the Oakley brief. Travis Scott's Chief Visionary Officer role already positioned the brand at the intersection of sport and cultural influence; Williams' appointment now gives that positioning a concrete product language. Oakley described itself as having spent "over 50 years wrapping science in art" and framed the Williams hire as the next evolution of that legacy under a "recoded design language." First collections are expected in the near future, and with this pairing in place, the gap between performance gear and streetwear credibility has rarely looked smaller.