EXCLUSIVE: Viral Toñita’s Hats Are Being Restocked — Here’s When
Credit: Gogy Esparza
The viral Toñita’s hats honoring María Antonia “Toñita” Cay and her Caribbean Social Club in New York City are being restocked!
From Peruvian-American designer Renzo Diaz, the hats blew up in popularity after Bad Bunny wore his this past fall. It was also worn by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and J Balvin. And fans loved the hats, creating a moment that celebrated Toñita no matter where you are. Ever since then fans have been asking for the founder of Where’d U Get That Hat? to restock the hats.
Made in collaboration with Latin artists for Toñita’s, three hats La Vieja Escuela, La Favorita de Toñita, and Toñita’s Anillos will be restocked. La Vieja Escuela is a green snapback with Toñita’s in a white cursive script across the front. “Caribbean Social Club” is printed above the name in white and the address and billiard balls frame the hat.
La Favorita de Toñita is a blue snapback with Toñita’s written in a different white font with “Caribbean Social Club” and the address written in red. And Toñita’s Anillos is a black snapback that honors Toñita’s memorable collection of rings.
When speaking to Remezcla, Diaz said that, “Making a hat to celebrate Toñita felt like a natural way to meaningfully contribute to the community. Toñita and the Caribbean Social Club mean a lot to me — it’s a person and a place that makes me feel like I was home in the city, and I’ve met many close friends while dancing, drinking, and eating food that Toñita made herself.”
When the 50th anniversary of Toñita’s (and the first Toñita Fest) was coming around, he was determined to make memorabilia to commemorate the moment.
“Ricardo and Abby from Secret Futbol Club, Rocco from Arena Embroidery (all based in Brooklyn), and I came up with a great design and hat for the day.” And then when the second celebration happened, he partnered with Puerto Rican Anna Garcia to work with Puerto Rican graphic designers, Hernán Ayala and Claudia Rubín, to create the iconic green and blue hats.
Creative director and strategist Garcia shared that the reason they brought back the hats was “simply because the people asked us to!” while Diaz shared that Toñita herself had asked.
The viral Toñita’s hats honoring Toñita Cay and her Caribbean Social Club will be available Monday, February 2nd on the Where’d U Get That Hat? website at 12pm ET. The hats range from $50-55.