Jerry Lorenzo | Founder of the Luxury Streetwear Brand – Fear of God

Jerry Lorenzo is an eminent fashion designer from the United States of America. He is the founder of the luxury streetwear brand Fear of God. He is also a sneaker designer and has partnered with prominent brands like Nike, Adidas, and Vans. His label has garnered worldwide recognition. Fear of God has no external investors, yet, its revenue has doubled every year from 2013-19. Jerry Lorenzo is one of the biggest names in the fashion and sneaker industry today. His contribution to the modern fashion world is remarkable. Within a decade, he has achieved groundbreaking success. 

About

Jerry Lorenzo is the founder and owner of the multi-million dollar brand Fear of God and Essentials. Both the brands are top-rated across the world. A-List celebrities like Kanye West, Justin Bieber, Beyoncé, Gigi Hadid, Virgil Abloh, Hailey Baldwin Bieber, Ellen DeGeneres, and Michael B. Jordan have endorsed the brand. With a net worth of more than $30 million, Jerry Lorenzo is undoubtedly the pioneer of luxury streetwear. He has changed contemporary fashion with his low-key, luxe, and creative designs. The fusion of exquisite craftsmanship and high-grade materials has taken the world by storm. 

Early Life

On the 5th of October 1977, Jerry Lorenzo Manuel Jr. was born in Sacramento, California. His father, Jerry Manuel Sr., was a professional baseball player. In contrast, his mother, Renette Manuel, was an author and editor. Jerry grew up in a deeply religious household. He and his family used to read daily devotionals (short and inspirational pieces from Christian publications created for reading every day). Both of his parents worked hard to earn a living. Jerry’s mother highly influenced his childhood days. His father had to travel all across the country to play baseball. As a result, the family constantly moved from one place to another. 

College Days and Struggles

Jerry’s mother used to drive from one place to another to stay together because they couldn’t afford plane tickets. The family spent most of its time living in rented studio apartments. They were living paycheck-to-paycheck. Jerry attended Florida A&M University, a public educational institution in Tallahassee, Florida, for studies. After graduating, Jerry moved to Los Angeles, California. Upon moving, he started studying at Loyola Marymount to pursue MBA. He used to spend his day studying at college. At night, he started working at Diesel’s clothing store. He worked at the store for more than two years. However, he was not allowed to be a salesperson. The reason behind the same was that his seniors felt that he was not “cool” enough. He spent two years working in the stockroom. One fine day, his seniors gave him a chance to be a salesperson. On the same day, in the same shift, he sold merchandise worth more than $5000. 

Beginning of Career

After the stint, the manager was impressed by Jerry. He decided to keep him on the floor as a salesperson. Soon, Jerry graduated and quit his job at Diesel. After that, he moved to Chicago. Upon reaching, he started working as a corporate sponsorships manager for LA Dodgers. Simultaneously, he joined the marketing department of a sports agency called CSMG. He wanted to become a sports agent. However, after working in the sports industry for some time, he realized this was not his goal.

As a result, in 2008, he returned to LA and started hosting night parties. As a party promoter, he came across many celebrities. The parties he hosted were a success. They attracted a vast crowd and famous personas. Jerry was earning enough to pay his bills. As a party promoter, he learned many skills. He focused on making the parties so unique that he never had to ask anyone to show up. Through the parties, he became friends with notable rappers and fashion designers. 

Jerry was enjoying his life as a party promoter. His parties were profitable. However, he knew that this wouldn’t last forever. After some time, he married his long-time girlfriend, Desiree Manuel. After becoming a father, Jerry decided to leave the party business. He wanted to do something substantial and honorable. Jerry decided that he would build a career in fashion. He inclined to fashion because he felt something was missing in the premium apparel world. As a result, he started working on a clothing line. He had saved $14,000. To kickstart the new venture, he used all his savings. Jerry knew nothing about fashion designing. Yet, he was determined to establish a brand to fill the market gap. 

Initial Struggles Followed By Unprecedented Success 

When Jerry started working on his clothing line, things weren’t easy. People tried to steal from him and cheated on him. Many people took advantage of his lack of knowledge. He ran out of money. Yet, Jerry had a firm conviction that he’d get something bigger than what was taken away from him. He decided to name his clothing line “Fear Of God.” His childhood influenced the name. Soon, Fear of God was ready to step into the market. Initially, Jerry launched a short-sleeved hoodie and a long t-shirt. After the launch, his friend, Virgil Abloh, saw the collection. He invited Jerry to Atlantic City. Abloh wanted Jerry to share his collection with Kanye West. Jerry rushed to Atlantic City. Upon reaching, he met Kanye and showed him the collection. Kanye was surprised to see the amount of work that went into a simple long tee. 

Life-changing Events

After seeing the collection, Kanye invited Jerry to Paris. He wanted him to collaborate on his upcoming projects. For three years, Jerry worked with Kanye. Consequently, Justin Bieber noticed him. Justin was planning to change his style. He approached Lorenzo to help him out with his wardrobe. While the duo was working on redefining Justin’s style, they developed a spiritual bond. In 2016, Jerry designed all of Justin’s looks on the Purpose World Tour. He also created tour merchandise. Even after the tour ended, the merchandise was breaking records at stores across the globe. Simultaneously, artists like Rihanna, Big Sean, and 2 Chainz noticed and started wearing his designs. In 2018, Jerry collaborated with Nike. He launched several successful sneakers with the number one shoe brand in the world.

In the same year, he launched Fear of God ESSENTIALS. It was a subsidiary of FOG. Jerry created Essentials because he wanted people to wear sustainable luxury clothes at affordable prices. Just like FOG, it went viral among youth. Today, Jerry Lorenzo is the undisputed fashion designer among celebrities. To date, Fear of God has no external investors, and it has doubled its revenue each year. Jerry believes that one of the bravest things a person can do is trust your vision whether or not others do.

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Also read: Alexander McQueen | Success story of the McQueen brand