5 Things You May Not Know About XCEL Honoree Bob Johnson
From a failed paper route to BET, Bob Johnson built a business legacy rooted in ownership, opportunity, and culture.
Robert L. “Bob” Johnson is best known as the founder of Black Entertainment Television and as the first Black billionaire.
As BLACK ENTERPRISE prepares to honor Johnson at next month’s XCEL Summit For Men, here are five things you may not know about the pioneering entrepreneur.
1. His first business venture was a paper route
Long before BET, Johnson tried his hand at entrepreneurship as a child. At age 12, he launched a paper route that did not exactly go according to plan. According to The Washington Post, Johnson eventually dumped his surplus newspapers in trash cans.
The failed venture did not stop his entrepreneurial ambitions. Years later, he would turn a different idea into one of the most significant media businesses in American history.
2. He did not start with television experience
Johnson was working as a cable-industry lobbyist when he developed the idea for BET. He recognized an opportunity created by the expansion of cable television and saw a gap in programming aimed specifically at Black audiences.
Johnson also entered the industry without previous experience running a television network.
3. A barber shop helped validate the BET idea
Before launching BET, Johnson wanted to know whether Black consumers would actually watch a television channel created specifically for them. He traveled to Anniston, Alabama, and looked for a place where he could speak directly with Black men. He found Pink Junior’s barbershop.
“I told him I’m Bob Johnson and I’m starting a new cable channel if people would be interested in a Black channel if we showed Black college football,” Johnson recalled. The response was yes.
4. BET’s public offering was about more than making history
In 1991, BET became the first company with majority African American ownership to trade on the New York Stock Exchange. Johnson later used the company’s ownership structure to create an opportunity for employees.
“That allowed the people that worked with me to share in the ownership,” he said.
When BET was sold to Viacom for approximately $3 billion in 2000, employees who held shares benefited from the transaction. Johnson has credited that ownership model with creating substantial wealth for Black employees.
5. He views BET as a wealth-building blueprint
Johnson’s legacy extends beyond launching a groundbreaking television network. Through The RLJ Companies, he has pursued investments across industries, while continuing to emphasize ownership and economic opportunity.
“To me, that’s what you do as a founder,” Johnson told BLACK ENTERPRISE, “you bring your people in and give them a significant piece of the commitment to opportunity.”
Johnson did not simply build a brand. He built an ownership model that allowed others to participate in its success. As an XCEL honoree, Johnson’s career offers a reminder that creating wealth can be about more than reaching the top. It can also be about bringing others along for the ride.
Whitesboro Gala Organizer Pushes Back On Claims Surrounding Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell
Felicia Simmons says organizers of the 2026 Whitesboro Black History Gala should be heard as questions surrounding New Jersey’s lieutenant governor continue.
A New Jersey community leader is calling for firsthand witnesses to be heard as an investigation involving Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell continues to draw public attention.
Felicia Simmons, organizer of the 2026 Whitesboro Black History Gala, said in a Sept. 14 statement that she was directly involved in coordinating the April 18 event and had communicated with Caldwell’s office ahead of his attendance.
Simmons’ statement comes after reports that an anonymous letter prompted an inquiry into allegations involving Caldwell, who also serves as New Jersey’s secretary of state. The New York Times reported that the letter alleged Caldwell brought “uninvited female guests” to events and distributed business cards to women he hoped to date. Caldwell has disputed the claims, calling them “inaccurate, misleading and completely false.”
Simmons says the circumstances surrounding the Whitesboro gala warrant input from the people who helped organize it.
“I was one of the people directly involved in coordinating the 2026 Whitesboro Black History Gala,” Simmons wrote in a press release sent to BLACK ENTERPRISE. She said she was the contact with the lieutenant governor’s office and received an email notifying her that guests would attend, followed by a call from members of Caldwell’s staff concerning the space required.
“So when I hear the suggestion that Dr. Caldwell simply ‘showed up with guests,’ I believe that characterization deserves to be questioned,” she wrote.
The New York Times reported that Robin Tyson, a longtime acquaintance of Caldwell’s, attended the Whitesboro gala with him and said investigators later interviewed her. Tyson said she and Caldwell do not have a romantic relationship and that he had not offered her employment opportunities.
Simmons identified Rev. Elorm Ocansey, assistant pastor of Transformation International Chapel, and Shirley Green, executive director of the Whitesboro Historical Foundation, as others who were involved in organizing and coordinating the event.
The dispute also underscores how much Simmons values Whitesboro, a historic Black community in Cape May County. The Whitesboro Historic Preservation Project describes its work as an effort to preserve the community’s legacy while supporting its future, according to the Whitesboro Historic Preservation Project.
Simmons said Caldwell’s appearance at the gala was meaningful because of the community’s historical significance.
“Whitesboro represents an important part of New Jersey’s history, a community whose story deserves to be remembered, respected, and brought into the wider public conversation,” she wrote.
Her broader message centers on representation, voting rights, and the importance of including communities historically excluded from political decision-making.
“Let firsthand witnesses be heard,” Simmons wrote. “I was there. I was involved. I know the communications I received and what I witnessed.”
The Whitesboro Historic Preservation Project has since amplified the call for organizers and other firsthand witnesses to be considered as the inquiry proceeds.
Simmons, a lifelong Asbury Park resident and former two-term member of the Asbury Park Board of Education, currently serves as president/executive director of WCC Historic Renovation Association Inc. and is a lead partner in the Whitesboro Historic Preservation Project, according to the release.
On Friday, Sept. 18, Westbrook and his wife, Nina, will host the 6th Annual Why Not? Foundation Poker Night at Fontainebleau Las Vegas in the Poodle Room. In partnership with the World Poker Tour Foundation, this fundraiser gathers corporate executives, poker professionals, and celebrity athletes for an evening dedicated to philanthropy.
“Our upcoming 6th Annual Poker Night is a signature cornerstone of our ongoing work to unlock game-changing futures for underserved youth. With that purpose in mind, my retirement is beyond a farewell; it’s a new door opened for impact at the highest level,” Westbrook said in the statement. “Basketball gave me the platform, but purpose has helped me reimagine what’s possible. This next chapter gives me the opportunity to invest further in the next generation. Since 2012, it’s been an honor to build new pathways to success for young people in my hometown of South Los Angeles with the ‘Why Not?’ Foundation.”
Westbrook has prioritized direct equity and Black ownership over traditional endorsement deals. His business interests include the Los Angeles-based lifestyle brand Honor the Gift, media division RW Digital, and real estate projects providing affordable housing in South Los Angeles. He also led a $63 million investment in Varo Bank to advance financial empowerment in marginalized neighborhoods, as BLACK ENTERPRISE reported. His portfolio includes stakes in Leeds United, an English football club, and the AI platform Eazewell.
Through his foundation, Westbrook launched Westbrook Academy to expand educational access and partnered with grassroots organizations to offer trauma-informed mental healthcare.By combining business expertise with community organizing, he is creating a model for economic self-determination that reaches beyond the NBA.
Pensole Lewis College Receives $10M Investment To Expand Detroit’s Creative Economy
The investment deepens the foundation’s support of the Detroit-based historically Black college.
Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design has received a $10 million commitment from the Gilbert Family Foundation to expand opportunities for aspiring designers and strengthen Detroit’s creative economy, AfroTech reports.
The investment deepens the foundation’s support of the Detroit-based historically Black college, which reopened in 2022 with the Gilbert Family Foundation among its founding funders. Pensole Lewis is the nation’s only HBCU dedicated to design education, according to the outlet.
Akua Hill, director of arts and culture at the Gilbert Family Foundation, said Detroit has no shortage of creative talent, but more infrastructure is needed to turn that talent into long-term economic opportunity.
“The challenge has been creating stronger pathways that transform that talent into sustainable careers, businesses, and wealth-building opportunities,” Hill told the outlet.
Founded by footwear designer D’Wayne Edwards, Pensole Lewis has helped more than 800 students pursue careers with major companies including Nike, Jordan, Converse, Carhartt, Adidas, PepsiCo, Apple, General Motors, Timberland, New Balance, and The North Face.
The college has also expanded its reach through ePLC, its digital learning platform. A recent program introduced 400 students to character development, research, visual storytelling, strategic problem-solving, and Afrofuturism. Two-time Academy Award-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter taught the course in partnership with Adidas, and the top three students earned the opportunity to present their designs to Carter.
Pensole Lewis’ partnership with New Balance has created another pipeline into the design industry. Edwards said nearly 300 students have secured one-year paid internships over the partnership’s 10-year history, with more than 40 ultimately hired as designers.
The $10 million commitment is designed to build on that work, address representation gaps in creative industries, and position Detroit’s creative talent as an economic asset.
“More broadly, this investment supports the growth of a stronger and more inclusive creative economy and recognizes the sector as a key engine for economic development,” Hill said.
“In doing so, it helps position Detroit’s cultural vibrancy as a driver of economic growth rather than an overlooked asset, and helps ensure the city’s creative economy reflects the diversity, innovation, and entrepreneurial spirit of its people.”
AI Could Hit Workers’ Paychecks Before It Takes Their Jobs
The findings suggest employers could capture some AI-driven productivity gains through slower wage growth rather than workforce reductions.
Artificial intelligence (AI) could begin reshaping workers’ paychecks before it eliminates their jobs, as emerging research suggests employees in occupations highly exposed to AI may experience slower wage growth even without widespread layoffs, CNBC reports.
The concern comes as U.S. wage growth shows signs of cooling. Inflation-adjusted wages and salaries fell 0.4% year over year through June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Cost Index. Labor’s share of nonfarm business output fell to 52.8% in the second quarter of 2026, the lowest level since the government began tracking the measure in 1947.
Research from Apollo Global Management Chief Economist Torsten Slok and Sania Edlich found that workers in occupations considered highly exposed to AI experienced inflation-adjusted wage growth that was 6.7 percentage points slower after 2023 than workers in less-exposed occupations. The researchers found no statistically significant effect on employment.
The findings suggest employers could capture some AI-driven productivity gains through slower wage growth rather than workforce reductions, though economists caution that the evidence remains preliminary.
“It’s absolutely the case that AI could be affecting the demand for certain types of jobs,” Economic Policy Institute Senior Economist Ben Zipperer told the outlet. However, Zipperer said Apollo’s sample was too small to establish a convincing connection.
Apollo analyzed 321 of roughly 800 BLS occupations, with only 11 meeting the study’s threshold for high AI exposure. The researchers characterized their findings as “early evidence.”
MIT economics professor Daron Acemoglu also told the outlet there is no convincing evidence yet of meaningful wage effects across specific areas or demographic groups. However, he said, evidence is mounting that AI is affecting entry-level jobs.
“Ultimately, given that the U.S. labor market is relatively flexible and has a fairly weak social safety net, I expect the impact on wages to be bigger than those on employment,” Acemoglu said.
Dallas Fed researchers warned that AI could disrupt the traditional white-collar career ladder by automating entry-level tasks that workers previously performed while developing experience and expertise.
Acemoglu said AI does not have to function solely as an automation tool. It could instead complement workers by creating new tasks and areas of expertise, but achieving that outcome would require investments and policies centered on workers rather than what he called a “ceaseless race to replace workers.”
Content Creators Are Seeking Equity Over Brand Deals
The creator economy is shifting from paid promotion to ownership as influencers seek equity, investing opportunities, and a bigger stake in the businesses they help build.
Content creators depend on companies and corporations to pay them to promote their products. Now, some creators want more than brand deals; they want ownership.
That shift was a central theme at the recent Creator Angel Summit, hosted by Cherub, where more than 100 creators gathered to learn about angel investing, hear startup pitches, and explore ways to become investors and advisers rather than paid promoters, reports Inc.
The movement could significantly change how Black creators build wealth. Instead of monetizing influence one sponsored post at a time, creators can potentially use their cultural knowledge, audiences, networks, and expertise to secure a stake in companies they help grow. Nadya Okamoto, the chief creator officer at Cherub, said the strategy is also about building financial resilience in an industry subject to constant change.
“For me personally, it’s a lot of thinking about, ‘How do I build my career for longevity?’”
She added, “I don’t want my wealth to be so tied up in and reliant on the creator industry that is constantly changing.”
That concern is particularly relevant as algorithms shift, platforms evolve, and competition for brand dollars intensifies.
From Influence To Ownership
Content creators increasingly bring more to the table than followers. They understand positioning, content, community building, consumer behavior, and cultural trends. Valeria Lipovetsky, a creator, entrepreneur, and investor, said her value extends beyond simply publishing sponsored content.
“It’s not just doing a post,” she said. “It’s ‘How am I bringing your messaging into my messaging?’”
That distinction could reshape negotiations between founders and creators. A creator with a highly engaged niche audience may ultimately provide more value than a celebrity with millions of passive followers.
But equity is not free money. According to Inc., creator-equity arrangements discussed at the summit commonly ranged from 0.1% to 0.5%, although the percentage alone does not determine whether a deal is worthwhile. Vesting schedules, responsibilities, and deliverables can dramatically change the economics.
“You don’t have to agree to five posts a month for 0.25%. That could be one post a year,” Okamoto said.
Likewise, investor Maggie Sellers Reum said, “For us, it’s really not about having the biggest audience. It’s about having the most impactful.”
That may be the biggest opportunity in the creator economy’s next chapter: turning influence into assets that can potentially outlive a platform, campaign or personal brand. Still, investing carries risk. Sellers Reum cautioned creators against treating angel investing as a primary source of income, describing it instead as the “dessert” of a creator’s financial life. Cash provides certainty. Equity offers possibility.
5 Things You May Not Know About Isiah Thomas, 2026 BLACK ENTERPRISE XCEL Honoree
Thomas has built a business career beyond the basketball court, from leading NBA labor negotiations to acquiring a professional basketball league.
Many basketball fans remember Isiah Thomas as the determined point guard who led the Detroit Pistons to back-to-back NBA championships in 1989 and 1990. However, during and after his playing career, Thomas also distinguished himself as an entrepreneur, labor leader, educator, and sports executive. Here are five facts about Thomas that may surprise even longtime fans.
Thomas Was a Major Voice for NBA Players
Long before player empowerment became central to professional sports, Thomas was active in basketball business matters. He became president of the National Basketball Players Association (1988-1994), succeeding Alex English. During his tenure, the union faced a major dispute with the NBA over revenue-sharing calculations that resulted in a $62 million settlement for the players, according to the National Basketball Players Association website.
Thomas Bought an Entire Professional Basketball League
In 1999, Thomas made a significant business move by purchasing the Continental Basketball Association for about $10 million. Initially interested in acquiring a CBA franchise in Detroit, he ultimately bought the entire league. Thomas aimed to restructure the CBA as a single-entity organization and strengthen its function as a developmental pipeline for the NBA.
Thomas Helped Build the Toronto Raptors
After retiring as a player, Thomas became part owner and executive vice president of the expansion Toronto Raptors, which began playing in the NBA during the 1995-1996 season. He helped build the franchise and was involved in selecting players, including Damon Stoudamire, Marcus Camby, and Tracy McGrady.
In 1997, Thomas led a group seeking majority control of the Raptors. The Associated Press reported that had the transaction been completed as proposed, Thomas would have become the first Black person to lead a group with majority ownership of a major league sports team.
Thomas Went Back to School — at Berkeley
Thomas continued his education after earning his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University, later earning a master’s degree in education from the University of California, Berkeley. His studies focused on the cultural aspects of sport in education, examining the intersection of athletics, education, race, class, and society.
Thomas Has Long Viewed Business as Part of His Legacy
Perhaps most notably, while the NBA made Thomas famous, he has spent decades developing a legacy beyond the game, defined not only by championships but also by ownership, education, leadership, and business.
Thomas will receive BLACK ENTERPRISE‘s prestigious XCEL Award at the XCEL Summit for Men, Oct. 21-23 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Florida.
"Digital twins" could help creators scale content and brand deals.
Influencers may no longer need to be in front of the camera to grow their brands and businesses. Artificial intelligence is making it possible for creators and celebrities to build digital twins that can replicate their online personas for branded content, fan interactions, and other opportunities. That shift could create a new revenue stream for creators, but it also raises the question of who owns the digital version of yourself.
In January, social media star Khaby Lame, who has more than 162 million followers on TikTok, reportedly entered a deal allowing a Hong Kong-based company to create an AI avatar of him for product sales and brand deals. Lame was reportedly set to receive $975 million in stock for the deal, while the company projected that his digital twin could generate more than $4 billion in annual product sales. The company’s stock later fell more than 90% from its January high.
Lame’s experience illustrates both the upside and uncertainty surrounding AI-powered creator businesses. The global content-creator industry is projected to grow from $314 billion to more than $2 trillion over the next decade, while creator advertising spending continues to outpace broader media growth, according to data cited by Vanity Fair.
AI companies are betting creators will use digital twins to increase that output without increasing their workload. Platforms such as HeyGen and Descript market tools that allow users to produce videos with AI avatars rather than appearing on camera for every recording.
For creators building businesses around their personal brands, however, the contract may matter more than the technology.
Caryn Marjorie, a lifestyle influencer who previously licensed her likeness for an AI chatbot, warned about the loss of control that can follow once a digital replica is released.
“I think one of the biggest pitfalls is people not realizing that once you give up your likeness, there’s only a certain level of control you can have after it’s been released,” Marjorie told Vanity Fair.
Talent agencies are already treating digital likenesses as valuable intellectual property. Creative Artists Agency (CAA) created an internal system known as the CAA Vault to capture and securely store clients’ digital likenesses, including facial features, bodies, and voices. CAA says the goal is to give talent greater control while opening opportunities for commercial use.
Alex Shannon, CAA’s head of strategic development, said the agency captures “terabytes of data for every single client” and emphasized that clients retain ownership and control over how their likenesses are used.
Attorney Robert Freund, who works with creators and talent agencies, cautioned that creators can “very quickly inadvertently lose control of your identity” if they sign away likeness rights without understanding the terms.
For Black creators, entertainers and entrepreneurs whose brands are often built around identity and cultural connection, the stakes are especially significant. An AI replica could help a creator take on more brand work, produce localized campaigns or interact with audiences around the clock. But poorly negotiated rights could allow companies to monetize a likeness long after the original deal ends.
Kua Designs Founder Ruby Buah Redefines Global Fashion Supply Chain Strategy
This contemporary luxury brand operates across multiple continents.
True visionary leadership does not merely participate in a market; it fundamentally reshapes its structural consciousness. At the pinnacle of this modern renaissance stands Kua Designs, an enterprise that has successfully disrupted conventional retail expectations.
Led by its trailblazing Founder and Head Designer, Ruby Buah, this contemporary luxury brand operates across multiple continents, proving that balancing creative expression with cross-continental operational stability is the ultimate industry differentiator. With an uncompromising reverence for ancestral roots and a brilliant tactical mind, Buah has paired corporate finance methodology with an unwavering commitment to heritage to establish a robust blueprint for modern fashion entrepreneurship.
Managing a cross-continental footprint requires more than a compelling narrative; it demands structural precision. From navigating shifting tariffs and currency fluctuations to stabilizing local production timelines, this esteemed executive proves that sustainable economic impact can be intentionally engineered from within the West African market.
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Redefining Risk: How Does a Corporate Finance Background Shape Global Fashion Supply Chain Strategy?
The transition from corporate boardrooms to the creative uncertainty of artisanal luxury manufacturing requires a profound operational evolution. For executives who spent years forecasting within structured multinational corporations, the initial challenge lies in managing systemic unpredictability. Fashion entrepreneurship introduces volatile variables—delayed raw material shipments, localized power fluctuations, and sudden fabric shortages—that traditional corporate modeling cannot eliminate.
This environment demands that leaders abandon the comfort of rigid spreadsheets and embrace fluid contingency planning. In the global marketplace, a breakdown in shipping logistics or an unexpected shift in trade regulations can instantly ripple through an entire collection’s timeline. Navigating these constant real-world pressures requires a rare synthesis of analytical stamina and instinctual agility. Survival in this space means recognizing that stability is not a static state to be maintained, but a dynamic equilibrium that must be constantly engineered and defended.
Instead of viewing this volatility as a barrier, Kua Designs utilizes an analytical framework to build resilient structures inside the global supply chain. Operational excellence comes from approaching creative development with strict business discipline, maintaining meticulous oversight of production margins, and cultivating transparent sourcing relationships.
“The first thing I had to redefine was my relationship with certainty,” explains Buah, reflecting on her departure from corporate stability. “Fashion entrepreneurship is much less predictable. What my analytical background gave me was the ability to build structure inside uncertainty.”
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Operating between Accra and the United States demands constant adaptation, transforming flexibility from a reactionary measure into a core operating system. By maintaining manufacturing hubs directly in Ghana, the enterprise ensures that global consumer demand translates into sustainable local job creation and talent development.
The Creative Force Behind the Paradigm: Founder Ruby Buah
Buah personifies the strategic synthesis of structural finance and high-concept design. Born and raised in Ghana, the innovative designer built her analytical foundation by earning a degree in Business Administration from Wesleyan College in Georgia and working as a financial analyst at Coca-Cola in Atlanta.
Driven by an innate creative calling to redefine the global narrative around African craftsmanship, she committed fully to fashion entrepreneurship, completing a formal degree in Jewelry Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City. Buah’s deliberate marriage of corporate forecasting and technical design allowed her to ground the label—named in personal honor of her mother, Kua—in absolute operational integrity, ensuring that every collection balances structural business discipline with soulful, unrepeatable artistry.
Why Authenticity Navigates Complex Cosmopolitan Luxury Demands Better Than Hype
The global marketplace often tries to confine African designers to a predictable visual language, interrogating their identity based solely on the use of specific traditional textiles. True innovation, however, rejects these narrow limitations, asserting that heritage can be expressed through craftsmanship, silhouette, material choice, and storytelling rather than performance.
Just as a global technology giant’s identity is defined by its design philosophy rather than its manufacturing location, contemporary luxury must be allowed to be multidimensional.
The pressure to commodify culture for a Western gaze can dilute a creative brand’s genuine voice, turning authentic artistic expression into mere spectacle. When a label focuses entirely on chasing ephemeral viral trends, it sacrifices its long-term institutional authority for temporary marketplace visibility. True staying power belongs exclusively to those who build on solid conceptual ground.
“For me, authenticity isn’t about performing culture,” Buah asserts. “It’s about creating from an honest place. I don’t believe African designers should be confined to a single visual language.”
Kua Designs intentionally engineers collections for cosmopolitan individuals whose lives span diverse global cultures, making contemporary luxury pieces equally at home in London, New York, or Accra.
Rather than competing with mass-produced, automated fast fashion, the brand deliberately limits production quantities, ensuring each piece features distinct, subtle variations in how stones are sourced and fabrics are cut. This commitment to slow, intentional artisanal luxury justifies its premium price point through transparent craftsmanship and enduring emotional value.
Building the Infrastructure of Empathy in Modern Retail
True social impact within a commercial business model requires integrating advocacy directly into daily workflows rather than relying on superficial marketing language. Through targeted corporate responsibility programs, the behind-the-scenes production infrastructure can be redesigned to champion opportunity, dignity, and excellence.
By employing visually impaired artisans to handcraft signature beaded elements, the brand directly challenges the assumption that inclusivity requires compromising luxury standards.
“The infrastructure of empathy looks like designing a business where people can succeed with dignity,” Buah shares. “For me, luxury is not only about the final product. It’s also about the humanity behind how something is made.”
This disciplined operational approach proves that when individuals receive tailored training and work in structured environments, exceptional quality naturally follows. While viral media exposure and high-profile celebrity placements provide immediate market visibility, long-term customer retention depends entirely on the product’s integrity and the consumer experience.
Traditional marketing metrics often prioritize transaction volume over relational depth, yet sustainable brand equity is always forged through trust and consistency. When consumers feel emotionally aligned with the values that undergird a product, their loyalty shifts from a simple purchasing habit to a deep, long-term brand relationship.
“A celebrity may introduce someone to your brand,” Buah notes, “but only the product and the experience can convince them to stay.”
By focusing on quality control, superior packaging, and personal storytelling, Kua Designs converts temporary cultural moments into predictable revenue through disciplined fashion entrepreneurship and lifelong brand loyalty. Rather than competing with mass-produced options, the future belongs to authentic artisanal luxury, proving that the brand remains at the absolute forefront of contemporary luxury lifestyle curation.
Kai Cenat Debuts Fashion Brand VIVET At New York Fashion Week
Kai Cenat is turning streaming influence into a fashion business.
Live streamer Kai Cenat is on to his next act.
The 24-year-old Bronx native debuted at New York Fashion Week on Sept. 12, showcasing Collection 1 of his brand VIVET at Cipriani in Lower Manhattan. The collection included boxy hoodies, leather biker trousers, fur pieces, joggers, tailoring, and accessories. Models included streamers such as Duke Dennis and BruceDropEmOff, alongside model and dancer Alton Mason. Legendary hip-hop artist Lauryn Hill and celebrity stylist Law Roach also made appearances at the show.
Business of Fashion described VIVET as owing aesthetic debts to designers Demna and Ye while noting that its community-driven spirit makes Cenat resemble “Gen Z’s answer to Virgil Abloh.”
The show marked a major expansion for Cenat, whose career has been built on Twitch. He spent roughly nine months away from regular streaming to focus on developing VIVET. During that period, he traveled to Italy and studied manufacturing, pattern-making, and leather construction alongside industry specialists, according to Dazed.
For Cenat, the runway was also a distribution play. Select VIVET pieces were offered through a “see now, buy now” model, allowing consumers to shop shortly after the looks appeared on the runway.
He can introduce a product to an audience that already follows his story, personality, and creative evolution. But VIVET’s debut also underscores the tension between traditional fashion and creator-led entrepreneurship. Critics questioned Cenat’s credentials and the speed of his rise, while supporters pointed to his ability to create his own platform and audience.
Fashion critic Ayọ̀ Òjó, known as Fashion Roadman, defended that path, writing, “A lot of people who went to fashion school feel entitled to opportunities just because of a degree. Kai created his own platform, lane, and audience separate to the industry and is utilizing it.”
