Why Matthew Williams and Travis Scott Are Running Oakley Now

On March 26, 2026, Oakley named Matthew M. Williams creative director of its apparel, footwear, and accessories divisions. Williams, the founder of 1017 ALYX 9SM and former creative director at Givenchy, will work alongside Travis Scott, who holds the title of chief visionary officer. His first collection for the brand is expected to arrive in Fall/Winter 2026. This is the most interesting creative brief in sportswear in years. ## What Williams Actually Brings to Oakley Williams built 1017 ALYX 9SM on a very specific design premise: technical function translated into luxury silhouettes, with hardware as the signature. His chest rig. His rollercoaster buckles. His collaboration history includes Nike, Dior, and Mackage. At Givenchy from 2020 to 2023, he brought that same hardware-forward technical logic to Parisian couture infrastructure. The results were divisive, which is usually the sign that something consequential was happening. Oakley's core business is eyewear under parent company EssilorLuxottica. The apparel, footwear, and accessories category is where the brand has always had structural potential it never fully activated. Williams is being hired to activate it. His specific skill, combining performance specifications with a luxury consumer's vocabulary, is exactly what Oakley needs to bridge the gap between ski goggles and fashion week seating. ## Travis Scott's Role Is More Interesting Than It Sounds Chief visionary officer is often a title given to celebrity consultants who approve colorways. Scott's previous Oakley work suggests something more specific is happening. The Oakley x Travis Scott campaigns from 2022 and 2024 were not product placements. They were directional. They established Oakley as culturally viable for a consumer who would never have entered a surf shop. The pairing of Scott as the cultural antenna with Williams as the structural architect is a clean brief. Scott identifies where the brand needs to be positioned. Williams builds the product that earns that position. The EssilorLuxottica alignment around the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics adds another timing lever: Oakley has athletic credibility at an event where the fashion-sport crossover will be at peak visibility. ## What FW26 Will Tell You Williams' first Oakley collection is expected for Fall/Winter 2026. That means the design process is already 6 to 9 months in. The silhouettes are drawn. The materials are sourced. This is not a future bet. It is a present one. By Q4 2026, you will know whether EssilorLuxottica gave Williams the budget and creative autonomy to do his most precise work, or whether they diluted the brief into a licensing arrangement. The former is rare in sportswear corporate. Williams has enough credibility to demand it. Whether a publicly traded parent company lets him have it is the real question.