National Heroes II
You may have noticed that last week’s newsletter was a bit, and dare I say, incomplete. I scheduled it to be send out a day too early, in an unfinished state - sorry about that.
So here’s the actual piece
Each nation has its stalwarts
The Italians have Boggi, France has Sezane, and Spain has the entire Inditex Group. Germany has el cheffe, Sweden has Stenströms. The UK has given the world Charles Tyrwhitt, among others. The US has Brooks Brothers, and Japanese retailer Beams has given its home market a globally revered house label. They all serve as “national outfitters” - style ambassadors if you will. Boggi is quintessentially Italian with its infinite range of blues across shirts, suits, and trousers - and the obligatory athletic fit. Sezane is selling the concept of whimsical French fashion, Charles Tyrwhitt is more London than London itself - the unbranded utilitarian finance bro jokes write themselves. And I know London likes to think of itself as a cultural hub - but it’s really just the UK’s and your favorite oligarch’s preferred financial service that happened to be a city. Brooks Brothers dresses like 80% of D.C. - in case you ever wondered why most American public sector employees look the same. Beams goes down the style and quality route, at least on paper, and by that, attracts a growing number of international customers.
So why are none of these brands embraced more by their respective home countries as a cultural export ? Are they already too big ? Boggi is available in 58 countries, Brooks Brothers in 45, while Sezane and Tyrwhitt ship globally, and Beams is slowly growing its footprint beyond Japan. Or have their products become too mass-appealing (/generic) to represent their respective home market ?
These questions stem from an increasingly louder discourse in Italy and other textile markets to replicate Sezane’s success with a domestic equivalent. While there is a case to be made about “French womenswear” being a distinctly stereotypical style that required the definition of domestic design sensitivities - it should not be too hard for Italy, Spain, Mexico, or the US to boil down national style elements into a coherent fashion brand with global appeal.
It remains to be seen if this will happen because it requires an entrepreneurial vision. Unlike Sezane and France, all other mentioned countries have a domestic textile industry that can be leveraged to signal the world - hey, we are here; we make great products. Wear a piece of what you think Italian/Spanish/Mexican/American/et al. style looks like.
Counterfeit and fake luxury goods
AI-enabled authentication platform Entrupy has been publishing the “State of the Fake” for several years. It works closely with StockX and LVMH, among other partners, to authenticate items on the secondary market. This year, Goyard took the top spot, closely followed by Prada and Celine.
Read the report - Watch the video
Michino gold hardware
Some of you asked if Michino was also sold with gold hardware - here is a limited edition of their Lutece bag with said hardware.
Wolf versus Goat drops
You may remember this video portrait of Wolf vs Goat, and the brand is dropping some new goods tomorrow. In tomorrow’s drops are cashmere blankets for pre-order in cashmere 15.2-15.8µm or baby cashmere 14-14.8 µm that come in a handy dandy cedar box for storage. For immediate delivery are the grey 12gg 4ply round neck in 70% extra fine merino wool and 30% silk and the 470g red knitted polo made from the same Zegna Baruffa yarn.
Valentino Garavni vs Mario Valentino
In light of Alessandro Michele premiering his first collection for Valentino today - here’s some more Valentino lore. A tale as old as time - why Valentino, Mario Valentino, and Valentino Garavani are not always the same in the US.
DMs on TikTok and Instagram are open, so keep your questions coming