William Rast is a clothing company that was started by singer Justin Timberlake and his best friend, designer Trace Ayala. The company was founded in 2005, with a fashion show of the new clothing line being launched in October of 2006. Although their primary focus is on denim jeans, William Rast’s clothing line also includes tops and jackets. William Rast premium denim products are made from fabrics from Italy, Turkey, North America and Japan. All William Rast clothing displays the signature logo that resembles the letter "V" with a slash across it. The company name "William Rast" comes from combining Timberlake's grandfather's first name and Ayala's grandfather's last name.
William Rast clothing is available for purchase online in sites like eCrater and ebay, and in a specialty store at Amazon. The clothing line partnered with Target in 2011, and so William Rast premium denim jeans and other items are available at Target stores, and at the Target web site. The brand also has eponymous retail stores in Los Angeles, Miami, San Jose and Palm Springs. In addition to regular jeans for men and women, William Rast has also produced maternity clothing, sportswear, outerwear and leathers. Accessories like eyewear and footwear have also been added to the brand. The eyewear line includes both optical lenses and sunglasses.
William Rast premium denim jeans are worn by celebrities, including Paris Hilton, Cameron Diaz, and Jessica Simpson. William Rast jeans were are prominently featured on the CW show Privileged, worn mainly by Joanna Garcia who was then engaged to Trace Ayala. William Rast has sponsored a NASCAR, specifically car #98 driven by Dan Wheldon, who won the Indianapolis 500 in 2011. The William Rast brand won the American Apparel & Footwear Association’s (AAFA) Brand of the Year award in 2011, under the direction of Andrea Sobel, President of Licensing for William Rast’s parent company, Sequential Brands Group.