Idris Elba has “an international ambition” for DSYF.
The ‘Wire’ actor launched his brand, Don’t Stab Your Future – which aims to raise awareness of messages against knife crime and working towards a better future – in July last year and with a new capsule collection about to launch, he hopes to take the initiative away from just the UK.
He said: “There is definitely an international ambition with DSYF. And I think it represents an ethos that goes across many territories.”
So far, the 50-year-old actor’s proudest moment with the brand came in January, when Arsenal FC stepped out in an all-white strip as part of a ‘No More Red’ initiative created by DSYF, the soccer club and their kit manufacturers Adidas, because he felt it was a great way of reaching as many people as possible.
He told Vogue: “That was a great moment, a very smart activation between three powerful brands that served as an innovative way to touch some hearts and get people thinking. Because football, more than any other sport in the UK, touches the most people.”
As well as DSYF and its precursor, 2hr Set, Idris and his wife Sabrina have also raised millions for charity with two collaborative Christian Louboutin collections, and though the ‘Mountain Between Us’ actor doesn’t consider himself a designer, he understands how he can use his name for good.
He said: “I don’t consider myself as a Virgil, or a designer, or anything like that. But, as an actor, I understand that these tools can be useful. Our aim is to build a fashion-purpose brand.”
Idris also explained how he came up with the clothing brand idea.
He said: “I was incensed about the lack of care and attention that people were showing about knife crime.
“There seemed a clear intersection between being able to communicate with people through clothing and messaging something that needed to be messaged.”
