In 1965, Levi Strauss & Co. formed its International Division to manage the growing global popularity of its jeans and jackets. The company began setting up offices and factories throughout Europe and Asia. This expansion marked the beginning of denim's transformation from an American icon into a truly global garment.

The globalization of Levi's coincided with the rise of postcolonial and transnational literature, as poets like Derek Walcott and Seamus Heaney explored themes of cultural exchange and hybridity. The spread of denim around the world became a symbol of American cultural influence, a subject that poets have both celebrated and critiqued. The International Division's formation also reflected the increasing interconnectedness of the global economy, a theme central to much contemporary poetry.