ENFANTS RICHES DEPRIMES

March 05, 2025

The Depressed Rich Kids

The name itself raises eyebrows—ENFANTS RICHES DÉPRIMÉS (or ERD for short). Directly translated, it means “Depressed Rich Kids.” If the French throws you off, it’s pronounced Anfang reesh day-pree-may.

SS21 ⓒmr-mag.com

ERD launched in 2012, split between Los Angeles and Paris. The label belongs to Henri Alexander Levy, a designer, artist, and all-around provocateur. Not just content with shaping fashion, Levy has also made a name for himself in the art world, carrying raw rebellious energy and blending high fashion with a punk-fueled middle finger to the establishment.

ERD Director, Henri Alexander Levy ⓒcomplex.com

Henry’s Private Exhibition in Paris, June 2023 ⓒhero-magazine.com

The brand was born in response to the early 2010s fashion landscape, a time when traditional luxury houses dominated the conversation, their logos acting as status symbols of wealth and power. ERD came in to mess with that formula, throwing a curveball at traditional fashion with irony and attitude. Even the name itself pokes fun at the absurdity of privilege, turning existential crisis into a statement piece.

SS16

FW16 ⓒhypebeast.com, ⓒelle.com

They also attempted to capture the loneliness and emptiness that is so common in modern society. The aimless wandering of kids who have everything, can do whatever they want whenever they want, but still end up feeling lost and down. When there’s no struggle, what really matters? The brand speaks to that restlessness, having the world at your feet but still feeling lost. It’s cynical, rebellious, and soaked in punk influences. Less of a brand, more of an artistic statement.

SS18 ⓒhypebae.com

Isolation, Rebellion, and Everything in Between

ERD is deeply rooted in punk rebellion, but it’s about more than just looking cool. There’s something real behind it. A raw, personal expression.

SS19 ⓒdesignscene.net

Henri Levy grew up on British punk bands like The Clash and Sex Pistols, being drawn not just to the music but to the raw, unfiltered truth behind it. His own life, though, couldn’t have been more different. Raised in wealth, sent to boarding school, and expected to follow a polished path to success. Yet, he became exactly the kind of person ERD represents, a kid with privilege but zero interest in the rules. That push-and-pull between privilege and rebellion led him down a rough road. He spent time in rehab, but eventually got into UCLA’s art program. When he chose creativity over corporate life, his family pulled the plug on financial support. Instead of backing down, he channeled everything into ERD.

The Clash ⓒsun-13.com, ⓒla100.cienradios.com

Punk was more than an aesthetic for Levy, it was a survival instinct. ERD became his personal manifesto, infused with influences from writers like Jean Genet and Charles Bukowski and artists like Cy Twombly and Jean-Michel Basquiat. The brand is essentially his diary, translated into fashion.

ERD isn’t for everyone, and that’s intentional. The brand’s lookbooks feel more like anti-fashion editorials, with models that look like they’ve just stumbled out of an afterparty at 7 a.m. The attitude is real, not just another trend packaged for mass appeal. ERD doesn’t chase approval, and it definitely doesn’t care if you don’t get it.

The heroin chic of the '90s, the decadent allure of Lou Reed and Pete Doherty, the boldness of photographer Juergen Teller… Many of the elements that inspire ERD go completely against conventional beauty standards.

Lou Reed portrait sweater, FW16 ⓒhypebeast.com

Photograph by Juergen Teller ⓒwwd.com

Artwork Grey Monkey, 1988 by Don Van Vliet, Levy’s recent self-proclaimed obsessesion according to an interview with MARVIN. ⓒmichaelwerner.com

Collaboration campaign with eyewear brand JACQUES MARIE MAGE ⓒmaxfieldla.com

“I kind of feel like we’ve isolated ourselves from the fashion community.”

Henri says without regret in an interview with MARVIN magazine. There’s something ironic about ERD’s stance, it’s anti-elitist, yet as exclusive as it gets. Levy coined the term “Elitist Punk,” which, again, sounds like an oxymoron but makes perfect sense here. Both punk and elitism thrive on exclusivity. One rejects the mainstream, the other handpicks its own. ERD blends them, creating a brand that doesn’t cater to wealth alone. It’s about a shared mentality.

And that mentality isn’t cheap. ERD pieces are priced as unapologetically as the brand itself. A T-shirt will cost around $500, sweatshirts push past $1,000, and outerwear often climbs over $3,000. This isn’t just about fabric and craftsmanship; it’s about buying into a self-contained world.

Levy doesn’t want ERD to be everywhere, and that’s what makes it desirable. The brand embraces exclusivity, not in the way luxury houses do, but in a way that makes outsiders feel unwelcome. If you understand it, you’re in. If not, well, you were never meant to be.

A motorcycle jacket made of lambskin, crafted in Italy, $5,750

Patchwork Flare Jeans $1,960, Classic Logo Hoodie, $1,650 ⓒenfantsrichesdeprimes.com

SS20

FW21

SS22

FW22

Chaos, But Make It Fashion

ERD’s aesthetic evolves season by season, but its identity stays intact. Each season, Levy balances effortlessness with intention, mixing streetwear’s raw energy with fine-art’s depth. The clothes aren’t only about looking expensive or luxury, they have a bigger story behind them.

Despite it’s exclusive and underground attitude, ERD is a commercial success. The secret? Extreme scarcity. Pieces are released in micro-batches, some even handmade as one-of-a-kind items. Owning an ERD piece isn’t normal shopping, it’s something closer to discovering or collecting. That limited availability has turned it into a favorite among cultural tastemakers like G-Dragon, Kanye West, and Kim Kardashian.

Then there are the shows. For FW24, Levy turned an abandoned parking garage in Paris into an eerie, cinematic setting. Green-tinted lighting, vintage cars, and thick fog gave the space a dystopian atmosphere, creating a show that felt more like an immersive experience than a traditional fashion event.

He took things even further for SS25, staging the show at Sotheby’s Paris headquarters. The space was transformed with metallic cages representing wealth, restriction, and power struggles. Structured tailoring mixed with distressed leather, creating a commentary on status and rebellion. Every season adds another new chapter to ERD’s ongoing critique of excess.

Levy sees his collections as deeply personal. They reflect whatever he’s thinking or feeling at that moment, making each runway show feel like a piece of his autobiography.

ERD isn’t trying to be relatable. It’s raw, moody, and completely unapologetic. At its core is a vision that refuses to be watered down. Whether people love it or hate it, they can’t ignore it. And maybe, that’s the whole point.