Willy Chavarria Wants to See Something New

Launched at the end of 2023, FOUND captivates with a ready-to-wear, gender neutral F/W collection, “Two Sides of the Same Coin.” Instead of striving for a specific look, Zaidi aims to cultivate a timeless feeling – one that embraces intentional storytelling and a fluid cultural identity. Think lush fields, rich tapestries, equestrian scenes, and delicate embroideries — you could easily wear FOUND out skating, at dinner with friends, or a cozy weekend with family. Crafted with care and ethical mindfulness, Zaidi’s clothing has been seen on the likes of Rihanna, Jack Harlow, Kendrick Lamar, Gigi Hadid, and The Weeknd, and is now sold across a range of luxury retailers such as Saks Fifth Ave, Neiman Marcus, Selfridges, and Nordstrom. 

Perhaps the most underrated element of Zaidi’s rebrand is a short film used to convey the essence of, what can only be described as, childhood nostalgia. Using Super-8 footage, the film–set against the backdrop of East Pakistan — captures a young boy’s journey past the confines of the unknown into creative liberation. It ends with a voiceover in Urdu meant to underscore the ethos of FOUND: “When others are able to see themselves in anything that has been created, then that piece of work is remembered forever and it stays close to people’s hearts. And anything that is able to stay close to people’s hearts, that is what continues to live on.”

Over a series of conversations, Zaidi walks me through his creative odyssey: from the genesis of FOUND and his interest in fashion to his desire to create clothing that allows for complete freedom of expression — regardless of culture or background.

Let's go to the start: can you take me back to the mindset you were in when you first began thinking about creating your own fashion brand? 

Early on in my childhood, something clicked when it came to my interest in fashion. For young, impressionable kids there are unspoken things that pull us in a certain direction and allow us to develop fascinations. It’s often not until later we can make sense of it all. For me, it could have begun by spending an extra five seconds on the color of my shoe laces or the texture of my hoodie and wondering if the color could’ve been two shades lighter. 

Growing up in a culturally rich environment, I'm certain, played its role. Being around my grandmother, my aunts, and even seeing my own mother adorned in traditional Pakistani attire — embellished with detailed embroideries with intricate florals and paisley patterns alongside a variety of fabrics, each with its unique sheen and texture — must’ve sparked something in me. Now, when I see old photographs of myself, I think back to what may have gone through my head at eight- or nine-years-old while picking the outfits I was wearing at the time. 

This was a powerful realization. Though it wasn’t until after college — and due to countless candid conversations with my sister and cousin, Iram and Nabil (eventual co-founders of the brand) — that we mutually identified a need in the market for intentional clothing. This sparked the idea of building a brand. We never had a formal business plan or received any technical training. We knew nothing about pattern-making or printing, and didn’t have the faintest idea of how to piece any of this together. What we did share was a background shaped by entrepreneurial fathers and, most notably, a shared immigrant  "we'll navigate through this and figure it out as we go” mindset.

Throughout your 13-year journey, what have the biggest hurdles been so far? Were there moments when you wanted to quit? If so, how did you get past the self-doubt?

Each part of the journey contains a number of hurdles — sometimes lending itself to mental exhaustion and creative burnout. At times, it seems like there is an infinite supply of design and story ideas that will continue to pour out of you and, at other times, having to delve within to find it only to be confronted with blankness. To feel the pressure of continuing to pull novel ideas out of the sky season after season and ambitions to reinvent the wheel instead of keeping the air in the wheel you currently have can be challenging, mentally. The upside is that I find this to be part of the thrill and the reason why designing hasn’t ever felt mundane or spiritless to me. So I wouldn’t say quitting was ever an option.

Operations and logistics wise, untimely deliveries to retailers and production flaws can appear as significant obstacles. Anything impacting the reputation of the carefully constructed brand we’ve built or potentially straining important relationships can become challenging to rectify. Aside from that, there hasn’t been a hurdle too high to leap — knock on wood.

So what prompted you to change Profound to FOUND? Why was it time for a change?

A few things prompted the change: the name itself, plus a desire to redefine the brand's purpose and positioning. With FOUND, the intention is to dive deeper into cultural touchpoints and embed them into each part of the brand's ethos — weaving the story with a familiar romanticism which, in turn, will really carry the work forward. I believe we can build a bigger world with the name FOUND — one that people can step into and insert a piece of their own cultures, upbringings, and nostalgia into. 

Visually, it’s shorter — more potent and succinct. I like how the typography looked, to me it carried more weight. The irony of adding more meaning to the name by removing a part of it was also interesting to me. But most importantly, I began to realize that there were an array of beautiful cultural reference points that we could pull from. I began to realize that the traditional richess we grew up around could be inserted into a brand. That was a revealing moment for me.

Intuition is usually strong enough of a guiding force if you allow it to be. I've tried to maintain faith in the natural evolution of things over time and avoid strong attachments to anything outside of beliefs and family. Specific entities like names or companies are all interchangeable — we can shift as a natural outcome of the revolving world around us. 

How are the values of your family and background reflected in the new collection and brand?

The brand, in its current form, is a complete physical manifestation of who we are as people. Within there’s an affinity for family and tradition, heritage and spirituality. It’ll continue to evolve just as time and memories do. 

To introduce the narrative for "FOUND,” we shot a short film a few months back in the village I was born in: Arifwala, Pakistan. My late father dedicated a large portion of his life's work to his village — building the first school and giving back to the struggling local community. The film traces a young boy's exploration of his homeland; the search to find something more in a place that can often feel so restricting. It conveys the idea of meaningful work that extends beyond one's lifetime. This connects life stories and the exploration of the South Asian diaspora as something that is very intimate and precious. 

To me, stories of family and tradition resemble a deeply immersive, spiritual journey. They grant me insight into generational emotions and perspectives while allowing the brand to become an extension of myself and my background.

To you, what defines someone's personal style? 

Style ends up meaning different things to different people. Like music, there are those who listen to it passively, often as background noise… then, there are those who pay attention to each cadence, lyric, and instrument. Some care just a little bit more about what they wear and are thoughtful in their approach to dressing. For most, style evolves throughout different phases and chapters in their life. 

In my role as a designer, I'm most interested in carving out that space — I aim to give people a way to communicate something from what they wear. I’m interested in these sorts of quiet forms of expression subtly communicating to the world all of the complicated spectrums humans exist in.

What's your favorite piece from the collection?

My current favorite piece? It’s probably between the embroidered horse work jacket with chain stitched floral embroideries along the hems and the leather pocket jacket with a hand distressed leather treatment. I worked closely with the craftsman on all of the leather during my trip to my motherland some months ago. It became significantly more special when I immersed myself into the process of it and saw the level of care and detail that was put into its making. These hold a special significance as they were designed to be passed down to future generations–they’ll only look better and develop more character over time.

And finally, who would you love to see FOUND on? 

I enjoy the idea of seeing FOUND on those who’ve reached greatness in their respective fields. Best-in-class sort of thing. I could name a long list of people in various industries that I would be thrilled about but Denzel Washington, Shah Rukh Khan, and Messi would be an excellent starting three.