MILAN — Call it Milan Personal Week. The spring 2025 presentations staged here last week showcased a variety of sartorial codes, from new proportions to sparkling embellishments. WWD has gathered seven perspectives on tailoring, one for each day of the week.
Brioni
When executive design director Norbert Stumpfl officially introduced the La Donna women’s collection earlier this year, Brioni said he wanted the men’s and women’s collections to be on the same level. He reiterated the concept at the brand’s spring presentation, which showed how it was gradually opening up to more feminine textures and shapes rather than reworking the codes of men’s wear into women’s wear.
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The next-level fabrics for which the brand is known—from lightweight wools to high-quality silks and crepe—were used to create lightness and movement in clean, wide silhouettes, as seen in a silk trench coat, a haute couture A-line coat, or the way Stumpfl opened up the sides of a tailored coat for extra ease. Classic suits and blazers had an effortless appeal, but Stumpfl also experimented with bolero versions, whose graphically cut proportions contrasted with the overall long silhouettes and were, he says, “a big change for us.”
Other eye-catching pieces included a black evening jacket covered in 8,000 tiny crystals hand-knotted in silk thread in a nod to the first movement in garment making, a technique repeated on an extra-long cream tuxedo jacket that deserved to be on the red carpet.
Blaze Milan
The city’s coolest girls, Corrada Rodriguez d’Acri, Delfina Pinardi and Maria Sole Torlonia, have recently put down roots in Milan by opening their first flagship stores, and are expanding their clothing world even further for spring 2025. Based on natural colours ranging from butter and hazelnut to dusky pink and coral, the range showcases both tailored cuts with new proportions and flowing pieces that complement looks while targeting warmer weather, such as leopard-print dresses, slip dresses and fluid sarong-like skirts.
Highlights included the Shamo bolero jacket and matching Appaloosa mini skirt, both crafted from Gipsy moth fabric for an effect reminiscent of raffia, providing a youthful look that can work from day to night. The same cropped cut was also offered in a chocolate-toned version with a white profile that was totally chic. The same went for a striking suit covered in buttery sequins, with contrasting details to highlight the jacket’s collarless shape and the brand’s signature half-moon Smiley pockets.
Chiton
At the event, which celebrated the first ten presentations with an evening event at Palazzo Kiton in Milan, the mood was cheerful, as Maria Giovanna Paone, creative director of the womenswear department, continues to build the segment each season. She spoke of the pleasure of traveling for spring, but also of returning home. In fact, Kiton’s Neapolitan tradition was there, with double-breasted suits that were perfectly tailored, albeit softer to the body, mixed with impressions from trips around the world, including the bold brushstrokes on the soft silk obi-like sleeveless dress.
Massimo Alba
Known for his soft colors, fabrics and tailoring, Massimo Alba sees his clothes as timeless, timeless and trendless, and wants people to “feel good and comfortable” in them. His latest collection featured a double-breasted linen coat in a soft cream color and a long, lightweight linen overcoat in a similar shade.
Alba argued that the coat could be worn on the beach as easily as it could be worn over a summer dress. Other key looks from her collection included sheer, striped tops that could also be worn on the beach, and crinkled linen trousers in various shades.
Eleventh
Eleventy continued to build its tailoring proposition around soft, relaxed silhouettes – feminine suits came in more formal single-breasted iterations paired with wide, pleated trousers and knitted bottoms, or inventive combinations of belted trousers and sleeveless leggings, the latter an innovative alternative to blazers. A lilac-pink double-breasted jacket paired with a tonal silk blouse put an intriguing spin on tailored khaki trousers, while versatile lightweight linen blazers were styled with casual cargo trousers or over contrasting vests for a modern interpretation of the three-piece suit. Signing a new men’s capsule collection for Holt Renfrew, the brand worked to complement its womenswear proposition, which currently accounts for 25% to 30% of global sales, and added Lurex touches to its eveningwear designs, a thriving category that includes alluring slip dresses.
Sa Su Phi
At Sa Su Phi, founders Sara Ferrero and Susanna Cucco celebrated female leadership and “all women who make a difference.” This empowerment doesn’t exclude femininity, as they showcased flowing, soft dresses as well as ripped suits; the common denominator since the brand first launched two years ago is knits. Suits, they say, are a means of self-expression, and are often worn in cashmere or silk knits for a more relaxed look. Trousers and skirts were made from menswear fabrics, but nothing was restrictive. Being strong can also be comfortable.
Slowly
Soft tailoring specialist Slowear is expanding its womenswear offering, now created alongside menswear. The brand’s store in Forte dei Marmi on the Tuscan coast is one of the first to showcase both collections together. “It’s one world in one space,” said Piero Braga, CEO of the brand.
Highlights included a pastel pink work jacket and double-breasted jackets in traditional menswear textures such as chalk stripes, herringbone and windowpane, worn with tailored shorts or trousers. There were also more casual outfits in the form of cotton khaki and field jackets and a belted shantung style that was as easy as a dressing gown.
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