The 102nd Pitti Uomo Florence was held from June 14-17, with 671 brands and more than 15,000 buyers from around the world to meet on a fashionable “island” (“Pitti Island“).
After a two-year hiatus from the epidemic, SMART.FASHION returned to Florence for first-hand report. We found many highlights at Pitti Uomo and in the city of Florence.
The classic Italian menswear keeps innovating in design, texture, and crafts. Brunello Cucinelli, while using a rich palette, imbues its spring/summer 2023 collection with the smell of summer; Kiton’s new line, KNT, launches “The Panda Project”; Slowear returns to Pitti Uomo after a six-year absenc, its high-end trouser brand Incotex presenting the “Incotex Blue Division” project ……
Sustainable fashion has entered the depths of the industry chain. It has been gradually embedded in the “underlying code” of the fashion industry. Gore-Tex, an American functional fabric brand prioritizing sustainability and durability, presents its latest technology, Gore’s eEP membrane; Ecoalf, a Spanish sustainable fashion brand, brings its Ecoalf 1.0 sustainable high-end product line made from recycled plastic bottles at the seabed as yarn; Italian rubber sole manufacturer Vibram’s newest lightweight sole introduces natural materials such as bamboo, and weighs only a quarter of a traditional sole; Italian denim brand BARMAS uses a 100% sustainable laser abraision process to create the world’s lightest denim fabric, developing a “jeans pocket that never breaks”. ……
The crossover extension of lifestyle brands brings endless imagination. Italian accessory brand PIQUADRO brings a “world’s lightest trolley case” weighing only 1.9 kg; Danish e-bike lifestyle brand MATE launches co-branded bikes with Evian, Italian fashion brand Palm Angels, and Italian luxury e-commerce and boutique store LuisaViaRoma …
Pitti Uomo is a major event in Florence each year, with a wide range of fashion events taking place both inside and outside the fair, in addition to product presentations and trade talks. Once again, Belgian designer Ann Demeulemeester presents her work as a special guest; the fair’s guest designer, Grace Wales Bonner, introduces the Spring/Summer 2022 collection of British menswear brand Wales Bonner; LuisaViaRoma reopens its physical store in Florence with the new outlook designed in collaboration with JIL SANDER …
Let’s follow this article with SMART.FASHION and dive into the heart of global menswear fashion innovation.
Classic Menswear: Design, Materials, and Crafts Stay “New”
“When you think of ‘blue,’ is there only one kind of blue in your mind?” In Pitti Uomo’s “Fantastic Classic,” a section dedicated to classic menswears, the Italian luxury brand Brunello Cucinelli displays its Spring/Summer 2023 menswear collection in the most prominent place.
Color plays a key role in the collection, with a rich palette that gave a summer vibe to all the clothing and accessories. The main colors of the season are gray, blue, and light beige, harmoniously combined with ginger red, salmon orange, sunflower yellow, and the indispensable blue tones (see below), one of which called “otremare” and deliberately used by the brand to describe a certain light blue.
Founded in 1978, Brunello Cucinelli’s core business is cashmere and wool products, combining traditional Italian craftsmanship with contemporary design. The brand’s founder, Brunello Cucinelli, believes that clothing should be elegant, sophisticated, and modern. This season, Brunello Cucinelli’s products are “modern” and the brand wants to offer its customers a more modern, young, and fresh product.
Suits are the real protagonists of the season. They can not only deliver the elegant business style, but also the laid-back, everyday summer dressing style. The modern versatility of suits is also reflected in the jackets and trousers that can be worn alone, responding to the changing times in a charming and lively way.
In addition, the collection features a modern version of the Sahara hunting jacket made of wool and linen, which the brand has never mixed before.
Italian premium casualwear brand Slowear returns to Pitti Uomo after a six-year absence. Its premium trouser brand Incotex presents the second season of its denim project “Incotex Blue Division,” a collaboration with Italian luxury womenswear brand Giada SpA (see below). The collection is derived from Italian creativity, innovation and skill, rooted in the expertise and tailoring tradition. With this collaboration, Incotex officially steps into the denim realm.
KNT, the young line of the Italian formalwear brand Kiton, presents its new capsule collection “The Panda Project” which will be released in October this year. “The Panda Project” T-shirt features a panda print in either red, white, or black, with two options: crew neck and hoodie styles (see below).
Born in 1952, Roy Roger’s is the oldest Italian denim brand. It combines Italian craftsmanship with the profound influence of American denim culture. The brand is committed to constantly searching for the finest materials, experimenting with innovative washes, craftsmanship, and cutting-edge technology.
At this year’s Men’s Fashion Week, the brand showcases its collections made from Japanese and Italian fabrics. It presents the brand’s history from 1952 to the present day on the façade (see below) and screens a 70th anniversary film produced by American photographer Bruce Weber to highlight the connection between the brand’s roots and American denim culture. The brand’s 70th anniversary collection was launched at the Men’s Fashion Week in January this year.
SMART.FASHION asks the brand’ exhibitors about their experience in developing innovative products in classic genres. Take polo shirt for example, Italian polo shirt brand Ferrante. through the use of different yarns and colors, designs different necklines, turning the classic polo shirt into a modern, fashionable, and fresh product. The Italian casual knitwear brand A.B.KOST designs products according a specific process, and then the design is made into knitwear through machines; the whole process after the design is completed by engineers. The quality of the product does not show on the outside but is embedded within—the brand wants to make the product reach customers who understand the details and who are looking for refinement.
Sustainable Fashion: Progressive Technology, Active brand
At Pitti Uomo, sustainable fashion is never a theme on paper, but is thoroughly “visible” and “tangible.” SMART.FASHION is able to get a closer look at the sustainable practices brought by the exhibitors. Throughout the years, we also find that sustainable fashion has entered the depths of the industry chain and is gradually embedded in the “underlying code” of the fashion industry.
Sustainability and durability are the cores of the American functional fabric brand Gore-Tex. Gore-Tex sets up “From Past to Future,” showcasing the first batch of Gore-Tex fabrics that entered the market decades ago and informing visitors the present and future of its apparel and footwear. Founded 35 years ago, Gore-Tex’s GORE fabrics division is based on science and innovation, with “responsible performance” at its core for sustainable apparel development.
In particular, Gore-Tex showcases its latest technology: Gore’s eEP membrane (Gore’s polyethylene membrane). This sustainable material, when used in combination with polyurethane (PU), creates a long-lasting waterproof, windproof, and breathable membrane that is PFC-free and has a lower environmental footprint. It will be used in recent fall and winter products.
Born in 2009, Spanish eco-fashion brand Ecoalf is dedicated to making a new generation of recycled products with the same quality and design as the best non-recycled products. The brand established the Ecoalf Foundation in 2015 to give plastic waste a second life through the brand’s “Upcycling the Oceans” program that cleans up ocean waste and recycles it.
Ecoalf founder Javier Goyeneche opens a special exhibition “Be Part of the Change” at Pitti Uomo. The exhibition showcases Ecoalf’s 1.0 sustainable high-end product line released in 2021, all of which using Ecoalf yarns made from recycled plastic bottles from the bottom of the ocean. These products combine the latest innovations in sustainability with a minimalist style.
In addition, Ecoalf works closely with other companies to develop new products using sustainable materials, such as the collaboration with British textile company Ananas Anman on footwear made from PinaTex®️, a natural fiber derived from pineapple leaves (see below).
Cuoio di Toscana, a member of the Italian Leather Union Consorzio Vero Cuoio Italiano, has released a “green sole”: made from plants such as chestnuts, mimosa, and kebracho, while produced using a natural vegetable tanning process.
Italian rubber sole manufacturer Vibram presents its latest “1/4” sole series: a specific number that refers to the weight and volume of a shoe compressed to 1/4. To achieve the goal, Vibram uses a lightweight sole technology between textile and rubber, introducing natural materials such as bamboo to make the material lighter, antibacterial, and cooler, making the sole more adaptable to the land.
Italian denim brand BARMAS uses a 100% sustainable laser abrasion process for its products, and the fabric weighs only 5 ounces (about 141.5 grams) per unit area, making it the lightest denim fabric in the world. BARMAS has a patent technology that allows the trouser back pockets to be stronger without leaving traces of ramp seams. The brand’s founders, father and son Francesco Chiapponi and Massimo Chiapponi, demonstrates the durable, “never-break jeans pocket” to SMART.FASHION.
Founded in 2010, Italian denim brand ENTRE AMIS launched three years ago a 100% environmentally friendly line of denim that is no longer produced chemically, but with natural products such as grains, nuts, and leaves, with entirely natural washing methods.
The founders of the Italian used-clothing makeover brand CULO CAMICIA started out by remodeling used clothes for family and friends and then turned it into a business. At the show, they show how to “take the road less travelled” by transforming old shirts into underwear.
Pitti Uomo creates a special Sustainable Style section for emerging sustainable fashion brands. Bennu, Connor McKnight, Curious Grid, Junk, Margn, Maxime, Mworks, Philip Huang, Waste Yarn Project, eight brands in combined are showcased in the section.
The sustainable fashion brand MAXIME was founded in 2020 and has so far launched four seasons of clothing collections. Maxime Fruit, the brand’s founder, shows the latest products to SMART.FASHION (see below). He says that 90 percent of the brand’s fabrics come from reusing stock fabrics – working closely with raw material suppliers in Italy to uncover and source large amounts of fabrics that have already been produced but not used, “to see what’s available before producing something new, because there’s already a lot there. We believe we can make beautiful products from what’s already there.”
In addition, sustainability is not just about using recycled and organic materials; logistics are also a crucial part of the equation. For this reason, the brand has chosen to produce in the “golden triangle” of Italy, Portugal, and France in order to reduce emissions during logistics.
A Lifestyle Brand: Run With Your Imagination
Pitti Uomo is a top event not only for menswear, but also for lifestyle. Before the opening, Raffaello Napoleone, CEO of Pitti Immagine, called the menswear show a “magical” session and said that he wanted to give more attention to lifestyle brands. At the show, SMART.FASHION saw colorful and interesting displays of Italian lifestyle, local Italian brands combining original design styles, quality materials, and exquisite craftsmanship, as well as exciting products born from cross-border collaborations between lifestyle brands from other countries and Italian fashion brands.
Italian accessories brand PIQUADRO brought the “world’s lightest trolley case,” made of polycarbonate and weighing only 1.9 kg per piece (see below). The case uses a unique silent wheel with an exclusive design patent; the color strip on the case is a “beautiful palette” prepared by the brand, fresh, shiny and with a strong Italian style, which comes with a free collage for customers.
PIQUADRO”s three values are design, functionality, and technological innovation, and each product is elegant, dynamic, and reliable. The leather used by the brand is mainly from Tuscany, the world’s highest quality leather source, while combining natural materials and renewable fabrics, and the bags are loaded with USB charging, GPS locator, and other technological devices to assist customers in their global travels.
The capsule collection on display takes its name from the Corno alle Scale near Bologna, where the brand is based. Over the past few years, the brand is collaborating with other companies to revitalize this beloved Italian skiing and hiking destination.
MATE, the Danish e-bike lifestyle brand that has been continuously involved in Pitti Uomo, is back with a collaboration with Evian and Italian fashion brand Palm Angels (see above).
Founded in 2016, MATE is known for its fast, flexible, eye-catching results and iconic colorways with the stylish and foldable MATE.BIKE, and has expanded its outreach as a lifestyle brand through collaborations with high-end fashion brands. MATE has also created a niche in the electric vehicle field, attracting customers from over 80 countries.
During Men’s Fashion Week, MATE also launched a co-branded bike with LuisaViaRoma, a Florentine boutique and renowned luxury e-commerce store: a Copper Cobber brass MATE bike based on the best-selling MATE X, to celebrate the renovation of the LuisaViaRoma store (below, right, MATE Co-Owner Michael Lillelund).
Italian lifestyle brand ALTEMFLOWER, whose main product is printed shirts, sets up a special “NO RAIN, NO FLOWER” booth in the outdoor area, bathing its products and flowers in the Tuscan sun and rain. It started from a small artisan tailor store andhas been passed down to the third family generation, growing into a mature company for the international market. The brand believes that the shirt is the second skin of a person and represents a passion and a conscious art.
Fairs And Cties With More Brand Events
During the 102nd Pitti Uomo exhibition, the Belgian designer Ann Demeulemeester, one of the “Antwerp Six,” was invited as the guest of honor, presenting her work from the last 40 years at the Stazione Leopolda exhibition center.
During the retrospective show, 46 pieces of Ann Demeulemeester’s work are displayed on a white catwalk in the center of the exhibition hall, mostly in black, with a few in white and red. The first 40 pieces are selected by the designer herself and span the period from her entry into the fashion industry in 1982 to her retirement in 2013. The last six pieces are selected from the brand’s three latest collections since its acquisition by Milan-based entrepreneur Claudio Antonioli in September 2020.
British menswear brand Wales Bonner unveils the brand’s spring/summer 2023 menswear and womenswear with a vibrant show in Florence that blends skill, attitude, and ideas. As a special guest at the Pitti Uomo Menswear Show, designer Grace Wales Bonner brings African culture of Florence by incorporating it into her creations.
Chinese sportswear brand Li Ning also makes its debut at Pitti Uomo, presenting a joint collection with Danish designer brand Soulland for Spring/Summer 2023 (see below).
While the Menswear Show goes on, the only physical store of Italian luxury e-commerce company LuisaViaRoma, also in Florence, is reopened. The Italian brand group OTB’s brand JIL SANDER is presenting its Fall/Winter 2022 collection on the first and second floor of LuisaViaRoma, which will run until the end of June.
| Sources: Pitti Uomo official website, The Florentine, Fashion Network, MFFashio
| Photo credits: SMART.FASHION, Pitti Uomo official website, Brunello Cucinelli, Gore-Tex official website, Li Ning official Weibo, LuisaViaRoma
| Editor: Huang Yuting
