African-American designer Daniel Day, a.k.a., Dapper Dan was born in the streets of Harlem, NY. Now, at 77-years-old, he is one of the oldest noted designers and haberdashers in the United States.
From his fabulous collaboration with Gucci, which black inclusion is speaking hefty volumes, to the work he has done with national celebrities. In addition, Dan has been the proud owner of several boutique through his years.
He operated Dapper Dan’s Boutique, which featured and introduced high-end fashions to the hip hop world, in 1982-1992. His clients included high profiled hip hop legends Eric B & Rakim, Salt-N-Pepa, LL Cool J and Jay Z.
In 2017, Dan collaborated with fashion empire Gucci, propelling him to open his second store and atelier in 2018. Morever, if you shop at the Gap, you might run into his limited line Dap in the store.
As a child growing up in Harlem, he could recall horse and buggies still on the New York streets.
A skilled gambler, and that is how he financed the opening of his first store. Dan also worked for a Harlem newspaper called ‘Forty Acres and a Mule’ as one more thing on his resume.
He traveled to Africa until 1974, returning back to New York to sell shoplifted clothing out of his car. Due to his color, and location his struggled to become a wholesaler.
So, he decided to teach himself the fashion industry and started making his own designs. Dan is a vegetarian, and as a result, he doesn’t drink, smoke or do drugs. He has eight children by seven women, and his son Jelani Day is his company brand manager.
All photos courtesy of Amazon.com, Etsy, The Gap, Gucci, Fannie Edwards and Redbubbles.com