In 2018, a brand-new Italian luxury activewear label, SEASE, was born from the hands of brothers Franco and Giacomo Loro Piana, sons of Pier Luigi Loro Piana. Building on the Loro Piana family’s deep heritage in premium textile craftsmanship, SEASE integrates high-performance functionality inspired by contemporary outdoor pursuits, creating elegant wardrobes designed for the modern man—equally suited to urban life and outdoor freedom.
In early October, Luxe.CO sat down with Franco Loro Piana at SEASE’s flagship store in Milan for an in-depth conversation. Franco shared insights into the brand’s seven-year journey: how he inherited and evolved his family’s legacy through SEASE, how he shaped its retail and communication strategies, and his perspectives on international markets, including China.
Above: Franco Loro Piana (left) and Giacomo Loro Piana (right), founders of Sease
Elegance Meets Perfomance – Crafting Emotion in Every Piece
Franco has always been passionate about outdoor sports, especially sailing, skiing, and surfing. Whenever time allows, he escapes into nature, which he sees as the best way to release pressure and restore balance.
In 2013, after Loro Piana was acquired by LVMH, Franco, who had worked within the family business for nearly a decade, began developing a new concept with his brother Giacomo. Five years later, the first SEASE store opened in Milan, offering a new kind of wardrobe for men—one that blurred the boundaries between city and outdoor living, combining refined style with technical performance.
Luxe.CO: How would you define SEASE?
Franco Loro Piana: We found a space between sportswear and luxury fashion. Many Made-in-Italy sports brands lack style, while luxury brands tend to fall short on functionality. I wanted to merge the two—to create a brand that embodies both aesthetic refinement and performance.
From a very young age, I understood that products should become loyal friends throughout life’s experiences. Beyond being another fashion piece, we don’t really need much else in our wardrobe. If a garment can accompany you for years and carry your emotions, that’s truly meaningful. It becomes something you never want to part with.
My goal is to craft emotion through products. To offer people clothing solutions that are elegant, casual, and functional. If I had to define it, SEASE is about redefining Italian tradition through design and performance.
Luxe.CO: When did you first conceive the idea for SEASE, and how does it connect to your personal story? What’s the meaning behind the name?
Franco Loro Piana: When I was fifteen, I used to sail with friends on a small boat my father gave me. Every year, I design new uniforms for our crew, embroidering our boat’s name and team emblem. Wearing them gave us a strong sense of belonging.
At twenty-three, I was working in New York at Bergdorf Goodman, and nearly every weekend I would head to Montauk in Long Island to surf. My bag was always packed with everything I needed—wetsuit, hoodie, books, music. I thought then: one day I want to create a brand that equips people for their own escapes—everything needed to break away from the city and reconnect with nature.
The name SEASE combines “Sea” and “Ease.”
Ease represents relaxation and release, while the “S” is inspired by my love for sailing. When you sail, you feel liberated. We want to help people release pressure, chase freedom, and live authentic experiences in harmony with nature.
Crafting Functional Apparel from Wool — Creating SEASE’s Signature Fabric
“My family has long been rooted in the textile industry, renowned for quality and style, and we never compromise on fabric selection.”
As a member of the Loro Piana family, Franco Loro Piana shared that in creating SEASE products, he strives to continue this heritage by maintaining uncompromised quality, style, and performance, using the finest materials, Italian craftsmanship, and traditional tailoring techniques.
SEASE products are mainly made from natural fibers and materials, with around 80% of the collection crafted from wool, and extensive use of linen, hemp, and cashmere.
Among all SEASE fabrics, the most iconic is Solaro®, a pure wool fabric patented in the early 20th century and historically produced exclusively by Smith Woollens in London.
The distinctive feature of Solaro® lies in its red weft yarn, creating an iridescent effect that changes with the angle of light. Known for its drape, breathability, and comfort, Solaro® was once widely used in garments for soldiers and explorers.
Since its foundation, SEASE has reinterpreted and evolved the Solaro® fabric through design and innovation. During the interview, Franco presented several SEASE garments made from this signature material.
Luxe.CO: When people think of outdoor apparel, they often associate it with synthetic materials such as polyester. Why does SEASE insist on using natural fabrics?
Franco Loro Piana: Even today, I still wear my father’s old jackets paired with a T-shirt, trousers, and sneakers. That jacket reminds me of the Solaro® fabric. My father was a genius in creating wool fabrics that could deliver high performance, and he started developing this technology thirty years ago. I wanted to bring that heritage into my own brand using wool, cashmere, hemp, and linen, always with a new life based on technology and garment engineering to make them highly functional. This is exactly what defines the uniqueness of SEASE.
Luxe.CO: Solaro® has become SEASE’s signature fabric. How did this evolution happen?
Franco Loro Piana: The original Solaro® fabric was very thick and heavy. I wanted to reinterpret it to suit today’s lifestyle, and that required significant investment. We developed new variations, wool blended with bio-nylon and wool blended with Cordura®, to make the fabric functional and high-performance while preserving its sartorial elegance.
Just as Bottega Veneta turned woven leather into its signature, I wanted Solaro® to become the same for SEASE.
At the same time, we strive to preserve the natural color of cashmere and wool whenever possible, as this is the best expression of these fabrics’ authenticity and quality.
Retail and Communication — Opening in Resort Destinations and Building Community Through Content
Today, SEASE operates in several directly managed stores worldwide. In addition to key urban locations such as Milan and Paris, the brand is also established in winter and summer resort destinations including Forte dei Marmi, Sardinia, St. Moritz, Gstaad, Courchevel, and Kitzbühel.
Above: Interior view of the SEASE Milan store
Luxe.CO: Why did SEASE first choose to open stores in resort destinations?
Franco Loro Piana: We started with a pilot store in Milan to present the brand’s complete lifestyle vision — a wardrobe designed to accompany passions and lifestyles that move between the city and nature. Then we opened in Sardinia, where we could better express our passion for the outdoors and our philosophy of escaping the city, reconnecting with nature, and living authentic experiences.
Most importantly, resort destinations are intimate environments where people spend much of their time outdoors, making it easier to engage directly with our clients. In large cities, this connection takes more time and effort to build.
Above: Overview of SEASE store locations
Luxe.CO: Beyond opening stores, what other ways does SEASE communicate with its audience?
Franco Loro Piana: Communication was probably the last step in my entrepreneurial journey. My priority was first to establish the company and then to create the product. I spent many years making, remaking, adjusting, and perfecting our collections before starting to sell online. For a long time, I had very little time to develop a proper communication strategy, which has been one of our main challenges.
In the past two years, I’ve built a strong team and now dedicate about 50% of my time to understanding how to communicate the brand through content and social activities.
For a small company competing in the luxury market, it’s truly a challenge because, compared to the big players, you don’t have the same resources. So my strategy is to invest the right amount of money in building an authentic community, creating brand activations that allow us to connect with our audience — such as tennis tournaments (pictured below), ski races, and outdoor events. These occasions enable us to create meaningful content and build genuine relationships with our clients and friends of the brand.
Our clients are generally successful individuals with strong purchasing power. They travel extensively, love spending their time in the best possible way, and are passionate about the mountains, the sea, and cars. They don’t want to be ordinary. They seek to create meaningful experiences in life.
Above: SEASE as main sponsor of the Automobili Amos team in the East African Safari Rally, providing a specially designed livery and dedicated team kit.
Building a community means creating a world driven by word of mouth, the oldest yet most powerful form of communication. When a client discovers something new that perfectly fits his lifestyle and shares it with another person, it may take time, but it’s the best way to grow. This allows people to come into our stores and understand the SEASE lifestyle.
From a strategic standpoint, since my vision has always been to build a lifestyle-driven brand, it’s very difficult to communicate this through the wholesale channel. You need a place where the brand can be experienced and showcased. That’s why I chose to invest more in stores, leases, and human capital because this path is genuine and solid for the future.
Global Expansion — A Milestone in Dubai, and Long-Term Vision for China
In 2024, SEASE took an important step in its global expansion by establishing a joint venture with Almarri Investments, a Middle Eastern investment fund, and opening its first boutique in the Dubai Mall in June that year.
Khalifa Almarri, Managing Director of Almarri Investments, shared:
“From the moment I stepped into SEASE’s Milan flagship store, I fell in love with the brand’s philosophy and values. It perfectly combines quality, traditional elegance, and modern design.”
Using the Dubai opening as an entry point, Franco Loro Piana discussed SEASE’s broader vision for global expansion.
Luxe.CO: Why did you choose Dubai, and what does this represent for SEASE’s international growth?
Franco Loro Piana: Entering Dubai was a very important turning point for the brand. Amid the current geopolitical complexities in the Middle East, Dubai remains a healthy, thriving market where people are happy and eager to buy the best products in the world. That’s why so many brands are investing there.
I was fortunate to meet the Almarri family, and today our relationship feels more like brothers. We are young, hard-working entrepreneurs who share the same values. Through this joint venture, we are investing together in the Middle East market.
Opening in Dubai was like opening a door. It gave SEASE strong exposure locally and created a ripple effect in Europe. Many clients from Dubai also travel frequently to Geneva, London, Paris, and our resort destinations, which further strengthened our retail presence. The Dubai store has played a crucial role in connecting these markets.
Luxe.CO: What other international markets is SEASE focusing on, and how do you view the opportunities and challenges in Asia?
Franco Loro Piana: We plan to enter the U.S. market in 2026 or 2027, which remains an excellent opportunity for a brand like SEASE. However, the real business potential lies in China and Asia, which represent an enormous market.
Thirty years ago, if you were an Italian entrepreneur, you would naturally look to expand into the U.S. first. Today, that’s no longer an obvious choice. You might instead start from the East, because the consumers there are incredible.
Asian consumers have developed a very high level of product knowledge. Over the past few years, they have come to understand our products better and are looking for new, premium, and unique creations.
The only challenge is that for a small company operating in Asia, especially China, it is very difficult unless you are already well known in other markets. Once you are established in the Middle East, the U.S., Korea, and Japan, then entering China becomes much safer.
To serve the Chinese market well, we also need to be ready in terms of product complexity, fit, and sizing, all of which differ greatly from Europe. Capturing these nuances takes time for a small company like ours, but it’s an essential step for the future.
| Image Credit: SEASE
| Editor: Xiaoyue
