The bell has tolled for one of fashion’s most influential and loved sons. Yesterday, two days before London Fashion Week Men’s Autumn Winter 2019 shows, after a three-year battle with cancer, noted British fashion designer of colour, Joe Casely-Hayford OBE passed away at the age of 62.
In recent years this sartorial gentle giant was known by most for the British label Casely-Hayford, which today stands as one of the most admired fashion brands in the U.K.
But this was only one of the many achievements of the designer of Ghanaian heritage. Joe Casely-Hayford was the grandson of J. E. Casely Hayford, MBE, an eminent Ghanaian author, editor, lawyer and statesman and although born into a respected black British family, he made a name for himself in his own right.
The first fashion label the renowned designer and tailor worked for was KIT. Founded in 1983, two years after completing his studies at ICA – which was preceded by formal Saville Row training at the Tailor & Cutter Academy in 1974, and studies at St Martin's School Of Art in 1975 – Casely-Hayford debuted on the British fashion scene with KIT.
A modernist magician, he crafted garments from World War II tents and turned KIT into a hit brand, before expanding to his first eponymous label, Joe Casely-Hayford, in 1984.
From 1984-2005, with his wife Maria (who he met at St Martins and married in 1980), at the label that bore his name, Casely-Hayford made an indelible mark on the fashion world.
The brand rose to cult status and became a favourite amongst the fashion cognoscenti and celebrities alike. 1989 saw him nominated for Womenswear British Designer of the Year at the Fashion Awards and in 1991, for Innovative Designer of the Year.
In 1992, Bono, the first man to appear on British Vogue, chose Joe Casely-Hayford for his look. Casely-Hayford had designed U2's stage wardrobe over their two-year world tour from 1991 - 1993.
In 1993 he was also the first designer to collaborate with Topshop and in 1995 Princess Diana sat front row at his show.
As the new millennium unfolded, Joe Casely-Hayford was appointed the creative director of 200-year old Savile Row house Gieves and Hawkes.
This, by all means, was a pivotal moment for the brand, which saw his first collection being shown in Paris in 2006, ushering Gieves into the 21st century. His appointment was also a seminal moment for diversity in the fashion industry. Casely-Hayford’s arrival at 1 Savile Row fashioned a multi-cultural trifecta – he was one of three key heavy hitters of colour on The Row alongside Andrew Ramroop (at Maurice Sedwell) and Ozwald Boateng.
In June 2007, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, for services to the fashion industry by the Queen.
For people of colour in and out of fashion Joe Casely-Hayford was a representation of black excellence, one of the very few black designers to rise to international acclaim. As for everyone else, he was the embodiment of a master who moved his field forward.
During his years on Savile Row, which ended in 2008, he was instrumental in changing the narrative of London tailoring. Known for what many dubbed subversive sartorialism, he made magic melding two seemingly different worlds together - traditional tailoring with subversive influences from street, punk, rock and skinheads.
While always forward in style, his fashion creations were marked by sartorial acuity. Casely-Hayford pushed boundaries and paved the way for many modernist designers in fashion.
In 2009, the second iteration of his brand was relaunched as simply Casely-Hayford, in collaboration with his son, Charlie.
From inception, the fashion duo delivered clothing defined by fusions of cultural influences from the street (including London’s bygone youth cultures of grunge, punk and skinheads) with Savile Row’s artisan tailoring.
The brand irreverently walked the line between sartorial and street style, making Casely-Hayford a must-see show on the London calendar. At the shows, their casting was always diverse, featuring popular male models of colour such as Adonis Bosso, Brad Allen, David Abodji, Fernando Cabral, Lucas Cristino, O’Shea Robertson, Sang Woo Kim, and Sol Goss.
In 2018 the fashion label’s first standalone store was opened on Chiltern Street in London.
It was at Casely-Hayford’s first show in London in 2014 that I first met the master. Back then he exuded a certain humility and every other time I met him since that encounter, his demeanour was serene.
He leaves behind his wife Maria, his son Charlie, daughter Alice and a prominent family and brand. The colossus that was Joe Casely-Hayford was a gift to the fashion that will continue to give for many years to come.
I will always remember the sincerity in which his softly spoken voice uttered: “Thank you, I am glad you liked it!” in speaking with him after shows – and so, in kind, and on behalf of so many – I gladly reciprocate, thank you “Joe the Po” … we are grateful for everything your life offered us sir.
