MILAN — It looks like a new trend is taking shape for next month and could be presented under the heading of “fashion Brexit”.
Sir Paul Smith is not only returning to Florence as guest designer of Pitti Uomo; A pool of London-based brands are focusing on Milan Fashion Week to present their new collections or celebrate menswear launches.
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As the Italian fashion chamber presented its official program on Wednesday, it was announced that names such as Martine Rose, Dunhill and David Koma will join the Milan calendar, which includes more than 80 events between June 14-18.
The organisation’s president, Carlo Capasa, highlighted the record number of appointments for the June issue and was excited by the “strong energy that currently exists in Milan”. He reiterated the synergy with Pitti Uomo and the “great harmony and continuity” of the men’s trade fair that gave Italian fashion momentum throughout the week.
There is also a quota change in the Milan program. The week will open with the Moschino fashion show, where creative director Adrian Appiolaza will introduce the brand’s first menswear collection and women’s resort 2025 line.
The same mixed format will be adopted by MSGM for the first fashion show on June 15 to celebrate the brand’s 15th anniversary. “In June 2009, I presented the first MSGM men’s collection as well as the women’s resort. I want to celebrate this memory and recreate the same energy,” said founder and creative director Massimo Giorgetti about the choice.
That day, Koma will make its entry into menswear with a presentation at a yet-to-be-disclosed location. Other highlights of the day will include shows by Fendi and Emporio Armani, as well as presentations staged by Brioni, Ralph Lauren Purple Label and Todd Snyder’s Woolrich Black Label.
Martine Rose’s fashion show will take place on June 16 at 17.00 and will be preceded by Simon Holloway’s sophomore collection for Dunhill. The day will also see Magliano return to the Milan schedule following a one-off trip to Pitti Uomo in January; the always eagerly awaited Prada fashion show; Matteo Tamburini’s first men’s collection for Tod’s and the JW Anderson fashion show that ended the day. Canali will also make his presentation on the opening day, following a special art exhibition and party organized to celebrate its 90th anniversary.
Giorgio Armani, Gucci and Zegna will end the week of physical shows on June 17, while the last day will be devoted to digital presentations of emerging brands in line with the post-pandemic tradition of Milan Fashion Week.
Other launches on the schedule will include Damir Doma’s Diomene imprint, independent label Ascend Beyond and Chinese label Valleyouth. These join Danish brand Henrik Vibskov, who will lead a line-up of Scandinavian brands to showcase in Milan, thanks to a new partnership between Camera della Moda Italiana and CIFF Copenhagen International Fashion Fair.
The project called “Ciff Showrooms Milan” will include brands such as Stine Goya, Mark Kenly Domino Tan, Envelope 1976, Aiayu, Adnym, Isnurh and Les Deux. Meanwhile, the startup plans to replicate a CIFF show that was also staged during Pitti Uomo, but Capasa said the brand selection will be slightly different.
In the same vein, Capasa said a new memorandum of understanding was signed between Italy’s fashion chamber and the Seoul Metropolitan Government to advise and promote South Korean startups during Milan Fashion Week in September.
As for the state of the fashion industry in 2023, the executive updated the predictions shared in February. Sales of fashion and related industries (including textiles, clothing, leather goods, footwear, jewellery, eyewear and cosmetics) reached 102.1 billion euros in 2023, an increase of 3.3 percent compared to the previous year. In 2022, sales of the general sector increased by 20.8 percent, reaching 98.8 billion euros, compared to 2021, when total turnover also increased by more than 20 percent.
Capasa said the local fashion industry in particular is slowing down in the second half of 2023, with industry clusters reporting contrasting performances. While sales of “core” categories such as textiles, clothing, leather products and shoes decreased by 4 percent, sales of companies operating in the fields of jewelry, glasses and cosmetics increased by 5 percent.
Capasa also discussed the crisis in e-commerce platforms, as well as increasing geopolitical instability, as factors affecting the results. “I see prices being more or less in line with the prices of the past few years, but there is a big change in distribution, which also affects, for example, discount strategies,” Capasa said. “We will need to figure out together how to confront this disruption and consider what other channels to leverage to reach consumers.”
On a more positive note, exports will continue to be an important driving force for the Italian fashion industry in 2023, reaching 89.4 billion euros, an increase of 3.5 percent. Again, the 13.7 percent increase in the jewelry, glasses and cosmetics categories compared to the same period in 2022 was effective in sales.
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