Levi’s showcased the designs in a three-part blog series where the company also announced to donate $500,000 in 2021 to organizations on the frontlines of the battle for fair and equitable treatment of the AAPI community.
As the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month draws to a close, Levi’s has asked AAPI membersto design one of their “most American” product, the Trucker Jacket.
Levi’s showcased the designs in a three-part blog series where the company also announced to donate $500,000 in 2021 to organizations on the frontlines of the battle for fair and equitable treatment of the AAPI community.
On its first installment, nine AAPI members from Levi’s Design team collaborated to design one jacket featuring individually designed squares to signify the “mosaic composition” of the AAPI community in the United States.
The team was joined by two Fil-Am creatives; Auvy Ruelos, Senior Designer - Men’s Non-Denim, and Nicole Cayetano, Project Coordinator, Design & Innovation.
“I wanted to break stereotypes and show the diversity that exists within AAPI communities,” said Ruelos who designed two squares: one with a skateboard and one with the sun from the Philippine flag.
“No matter what island I visited, I’d look around and observe a sea of AAPI.
Hawaii is where I feel most at home,” said Cayetano who designed her square to have the shaka hand gesture what she feels “express approval and solidarity.”
On Levi’s second installment, Levi’s staffers were able to design their own individual trucker jackets.
Two Fil-Am staffers took inspiration from traditional Filipiniana.
Senior Designer for Levi’s Global Brand Creative Gem Mateo’s design incorporates the barong, hoping to represent all Filipinos.
“I mashed up the two together to represent Filipino Americans and my own cultural background,” wrote Mateo.
As for Melissa Ladines, Director of US PR & Entertainment Marketing, she looked back to wearing terno to weddings and formal events so she incorporated the sleeves into her Trucker Jacket.
“I always thought it was a bold fashion statement for a Filipina woman,” Ladines wrote. “I wanted to incorporate the sleeves into a Trucker Jacket to achieve the same statement and strengthen Filipino pride.”
Finally, on Levi’s AAPI Heritage Month celebration’s third and final installment, AAPI community leaders were asked to design their Trucker Jackets.
Paul Ocampo, Director of Development at the Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Asian Law Caucus, took inspiration from the Filipino jeepney, full of designs, decals, and icons.
“I imagined that this jacket was my own personal jeepney to be adorned with designs and decals that reflect my identity today,” said Ocampo.
Check out more of Levi’s AAPI-inspired pieces at Levi’s Off The Cuff blog to read the full interviews and see more creations from other AAPI members.
As for the jackets, they “will be housed at the Levi’s® Archives, where it’ll act as a reminder of the past, a reflection of the present and celebration of the future we hope to build.”
Tags: #AsiaPacific, #AAPIHeritageMonth, #Levis, #fashion