No fluff this time, we are getting straight into the three main takeaways.
Washed-out and light pink was the most consistently displayed color across all brands and booths. Colors remain somewhat muted, or as I like to say, the “fifty shades of beige” continue to reign supreme.
Light light light. You might say, “duh, it was a trade show for Spring Summer 2025”, and you are partially correct. But hear me out, it’s not just about the fabrics themselves, but about garment construction. Single-layer canvas was pretty much the norm regardless of whether the brand was from Naples/Southern Italy or not. The collars are increasingly lacking interlining, creating less sturdy, and overall softer collars. In some cases, this also translated to hardware, which despite being custom, was lighter and less bulky. Zippers became smaller, buttons became slimmer, and logos patches and plaquettes became thinner. Before you jump into the comment section, of course, lighter fabrics can only sustain lighter hardware, but, it was something that several brands pointed out themselves when they talked about their new products.
Sustainability is confronted with the reality of discerning customers. The majority of brands want to source more sustainable and greener materials, but the majority of what’s available today, whether these are animal leather alternatives, recycled synthetic fabrics as well as post-consumer natural fabrics, do not meet the requirements of most brands. Keeping in mind that this is a premium trade show which for the most part, does not feature high street brands, the bar for durability is higher than those of global mass market companies that sell SKUs by the thousands.
Don’t be that brand, get a copywriter, don’t just commission something that sounds good in your head. I say this with love, but there’s a group on Twitter where copywriters collect these verbal accidents to teach juniors.
The art deco inspired brand creates pieces for the “modern” traveler, a slightly overused term, but one that applies to the brand’s customer base. Hand-finished steel suitcases, leather bags and accessories made from flawless European hides that were finished by the finest tanneries. MPM isn’t messing around. The interior of its suitcases are customizable for vendors in almost every imaginable color that suede comes in, and of course also in nylon. Custom hardware on its leather goods, and some off the shelve pieces for its suitcases contribute to an interesting mix of novelty and familiarity when you are seeing a Maison Philippe Montagne piece. It is an interesting, new, player in the luxury suitcase segment that has vision and language that is unique enough to stand out among its target audience while flying under the radar among the uninitiated.
Yesterday’s video kicked off an interesting discourse in the comments section. What is the purpose of a critic, and how is commercial commentary presented by most social media accounts different ? And it appears to require a quick refresher on what critics do. A critic assesses a piece of work, whether that is fashion, music, art objects, movies, and television. The subsequent critique describes, analyzes, interprets, and then evaluates the work. Well-written critiques include Pitchfork’s piece on Radiohead’s album Kid A, Robert Hughes’ (who was controversial) critique on Damien Hirst, and David Ehrlich’s critique of Personal Shopper for IndieWire. This is what critiques should read and sound like, and we have not seen this level of intellectual or lyrical work from mainstream outlets or critic’s accounts in years.
What is happening on social media these days is mostly commercial commentary that merely describes and analyzes bodies of work, or in this context, fashion shows. It often stops at an observational level. The most subjective element will be a black-or-white rating on the likeability scale. While this is just as valid as a fully formed critique, they are not the same.
Social media has oversimplified complex assessments of work with binary hot takes, which in turn led to a homogenization of work. First, critics didn’t automatically reward complexity with positivity, yet they acted as and were arbiters. Then more benevolent voices emerged in the form of commentators, who lacked the contextual knowledge, or willingness to express it, to assess bodies of work; yet they found audiences that were satisfied by mere descriptions of what they had just seen. In turn, the once-lauded critics were drowned out by new voices that spoke directly to customers and mostly spared the artists and audiences any form of negativity.
This and other factors have led us to a state of mainstream fashion where Valentino is Gucci, Gucci is Prada, and Prada is Raf Simmons archive, all in a tinted sea of sparkles reflecting all 50 shades of beige.
Hogan, a brand of Diego Della Valle’s Tod’s Group (alongside Tod’s, Fay and Roger Vivier) that only dates back to 1986, and has only launched a new model every couple of years. The H580 is its newest sneaker that brings together the essence of what Hogan is known for, comfortable, trendy, Made in Italy sneakers. The company uses Nappa leather, of which you can still see the grain in the product photo above.
Why buy ? The insoles are removable, the leather is soft, the cushioning is plentiful. Sizes range from UK5 to UK13, so there is plenty to choose from among the five different leathers that the H580 is currently available in.
There will be one more Pitti video dropping on TikTok this week before we get to the requested coverage of brands like Aurelien and other bits and bops that I have all registered in the comments section but simply did not have the time to record.
Rewoven - light
Rewoven - light
Rewoven - light
Due to technical difficulties - here is this week’s Rewoven via the thread feature
Post Pitti pinning
No fluff this time, we are getting straight into the three main takeaways.
Washed-out and light pink was the most consistently displayed color across all brands and booths. Colors remain somewhat muted, or as I like to say, the “fifty shades of beige” continue to reign supreme.
Light light light. You might say, “duh, it was a trade show for Spring Summer 2025”, and you are partially correct. But hear me out, it’s not just about the fabrics themselves, but about garment construction. Single-layer canvas was pretty much the norm regardless of whether the brand was from Naples/Southern Italy or not. The collars are increasingly lacking interlining, creating less sturdy, and overall softer collars. In some cases, this also translated to hardware, which despite being custom, was lighter and less bulky. Zippers became smaller, buttons became slimmer, and logos patches and plaquettes became thinner. Before you jump into the comment section, of course, lighter fabrics can only sustain lighter hardware, but, it was something that several brands pointed out themselves when they talked about their new products.
Sustainability is confronted with the reality of discerning customers. The majority of brands want to source more sustainable and greener materials, but the majority of what’s available today, whether these are animal leather alternatives, recycled synthetic fabrics as well as post-consumer natural fabrics, do not meet the requirements of most brands. Keeping in mind that this is a premium trade show which for the most part, does not feature high street brands, the bar for durability is higher than those of global mass market companies that sell SKUs by the thousands.
ICYMI Day One video - Unexpected brands at Pitti
Give it the boot
Don’t be that brand, get a copywriter, don’t just commission something that sounds good in your head. I say this with love, but there’s a group on Twitter where copywriters collect these verbal accidents to teach juniors.
HQ brands - Maison Philippe Montagne
The art deco inspired brand creates pieces for the “modern” traveler, a slightly overused term, but one that applies to the brand’s customer base. Hand-finished steel suitcases, leather bags and accessories made from flawless European hides that were finished by the finest tanneries. MPM isn’t messing around. The interior of its suitcases are customizable for vendors in almost every imaginable color that suede comes in, and of course also in nylon. Custom hardware on its leather goods, and some off the shelve pieces for its suitcases contribute to an interesting mix of novelty and familiarity when you are seeing a Maison Philippe Montagne piece. It is an interesting, new, player in the luxury suitcase segment that has vision and language that is unique enough to stand out among its target audience while flying under the radar among the uninitiated.
Shop here - Watch the video
The end of the fashion critic
Yesterday’s video kicked off an interesting discourse in the comments section. What is the purpose of a critic, and how is commercial commentary presented by most social media accounts different ? And it appears to require a quick refresher on what critics do. A critic assesses a piece of work, whether that is fashion, music, art objects, movies, and television. The subsequent critique describes, analyzes, interprets, and then evaluates the work. Well-written critiques include Pitchfork’s piece on Radiohead’s album Kid A, Robert Hughes’ (who was controversial) critique on Damien Hirst, and David Ehrlich’s critique of Personal Shopper for IndieWire. This is what critiques should read and sound like, and we have not seen this level of intellectual or lyrical work from mainstream outlets or critic’s accounts in years.
What is happening on social media these days is mostly commercial commentary that merely describes and analyzes bodies of work, or in this context, fashion shows. It often stops at an observational level. The most subjective element will be a black-or-white rating on the likeability scale. While this is just as valid as a fully formed critique, they are not the same.
Social media has oversimplified complex assessments of work with binary hot takes, which in turn led to a homogenization of work. First, critics didn’t automatically reward complexity with positivity, yet they acted as and were arbiters. Then more benevolent voices emerged in the form of commentators, who lacked the contextual knowledge, or willingness to express it, to assess bodies of work; yet they found audiences that were satisfied by mere descriptions of what they had just seen. In turn, the once-lauded critics were drowned out by new voices that spoke directly to customers and mostly spared the artists and audiences any form of negativity.
This and other factors have led us to a state of mainstream fashion where Valentino is Gucci, Gucci is Prada, and Prada is Raf Simmons archive, all in a tinted sea of sparkles reflecting all 50 shades of beige.
Watch the video
Hogan H580
Hogan, a brand of Diego Della Valle’s Tod’s Group (alongside Tod’s, Fay and Roger Vivier) that only dates back to 1986, and has only launched a new model every couple of years. The H580 is its newest sneaker that brings together the essence of what Hogan is known for, comfortable, trendy, Made in Italy sneakers. The company uses Nappa leather, of which you can still see the grain in the product photo above.
Why buy ? The insoles are removable, the leather is soft, the cushioning is plentiful. Sizes range from UK5 to UK13, so there is plenty to choose from among the five different leathers that the H580 is currently available in.
Shop here - Watch the video
There will be one more Pitti video dropping on TikTok this week before we get to the requested coverage of brands like Aurelien and other bits and bops that I have all registered in the comments section but simply did not have the time to record.
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