The viral T-shirt guy

Conner Ives made the Protect the Dolls tees worn by Addison Rae and Pedro Pascal, raising over $600,000 for Trans Lifeline.

He reads his own hate

After his New York Fashion Week debut, someone posted asking if Ives was a ponzi scheme. He found it funny.

“The first thing that I do after a show is go online and find the vitriol. I'm a sadomasochist.”

The Grill as runway

His show took place at The Grill, a wealthy Manhattan spot with Warhol paintings. Socialites and actors walked his runway.

Everyone thinks he's British

Ives is American but became a designer in London after studying at Central Saint Martins. His visa expired, bringing him back to New York.

Not a nepo baby

Ives is from wealthy Bedford, New York, but his father is a minister and his mother is a self-made orthodontist who put herself through school.

“I'm a cis, white male from upstate New York, Bedford, more specifically. It's very easy for people to fill in the blanks there.”

Powerful women as patrons

His biggest supporters are Lauren Santo Domingo of Moda Operandi and Sara Moonves, editor of W Magazine and daughter of Les Moonves.

The old patron model

Ives compares his relationships to Galliano's with Sao Schlumberger or McQueen's with Isabella Blow. It's a symbiotic relationship.

“If you have a friend who likes what you are doing and has the power and means to support it, why would I turn that down?”

His generation says no

Designers in Ives's cohort like to reject the establishment. He thinks doing fashion in an edgelord way feels strange in 2026.

“It just feels so strange to do fashion in 2026 in this edgelord kind of way.”

Moda can't keep stock

Moda Operandi did nearly $500,000 in sales from his fall trunk show in March, an extraordinary result for an emerging designer.

“We cannot keep his clothing in stock.”

Santo Domingo wore him

When Santo Domingo wore Ives to the Vanity Fair Oscar Party, his fall collection launched at 75% sell-through in one week.

The viral jacket moment

Moonves wore an Ives fur robe coat to a Paris dinner in 2025. They sold 30 jackets that night from Instagram messages alone.

“When the party pictures went up, I cannot tell you how many messages I received about the jacket.”

Clothes that make you dance

His clothes make women feel sexy, cool, and effortless. You stand out without peacocking, Moonves says.

“Every time I wear them, I want to go dancing.”

A 350% sales jump

His fall collection brought a 350% increase in wholesale and private clients. The company is entirely self-funded with no external investment.

“There was this injection of money into the company just from us selling clothes.”

Everyone's invited

For every socialite at his show, there's someone like him who dreamt big and made it. Everyone has a seat at his table.

“Whether you believe what I'm saying or not, everyone has a seat at the table. Everyone is invited. And the bigger the party, the bigger the table.”