Italian fashion


is one of the leading countries in fashion design, alongside France, the United States and the United Kingdom. Fashion has always been an important part of the country's cultural life and society, and Italians are well known for their attention of dressing-up well; "la bella figura", or good impression, remains traditional.
Italian fashion became prominent during the 11th to 16th centuries, when artistic development in Italy was at its peak. Cities such as Rome, Palermo, Venice, Milan, Naples, Florence and Vicenza started to produce luxury goods, hats, cosmetics, jewelry and rich fabrics. From the 17th century to the early 20th, Italian fashion lost its importance and lustre and Europe's main trendsetter became France, with the great popularity of French fashion; this is due to the luxury dresses which were designed for the courtiers of Louis XIV. However, since the 1951–53 fashion soirées held by Giovanni Battista Giorgini in Florence, the "Italian school" started to compete with the French haute couture, and labels such as Ferragamo and Gucci began to contend with Chanel and Dior. In 2009, according to the Global Language Monitor, Milan, Italy's centre of design, was ranked the top fashion capital of the world, and Rome was ranked fourth, and, although both cities fell in subsequent rankings, in 2011, Florence entered as the 31st world fashion capital. Milan is generally considered to be one of the "big four" global fashion capitals, along with New York City, Paris, and London; occasionally, the "big five" also includes Rome.
Italian fashion is linked to the most generalized concept of "Made in Italy", a merchandise brand expressing excellence of creativity and craftsmanship. Italian luxury goods are renowned for the quality of the textiles and the elegance and refinement of their construction. Many French, British and American high-top luxury brands also rely on Italian craft factories, located in highly specialized areas in the metropolitan area of Naples and in the centre-north of Italy, to produce parts of their apparel and accessories.
The nonprofit association that co-ordinates and promotes the development of Italian fashion is the National Chamber of Italian Fashion, now led by Carlo Capasa. It was set up in 1958 in Rome and now is settled in Milan and represents all the highest cultural values of Italian fashion. This association has pursued a policy of organisational support aimed at the knowledge, promotion and development of fashion through high-profile events in Italy and abroad.

Italian fashion houses, designers and luxury brands

Examples of major Italian fashion houses focused on both menswear and womenswear, but also accessories, are:
Giorgio Armani, Byblos, Bottega Veneta, Roberto Cavalli, Costume National, Brunello Cucinelli, Diesel, Dolce & Gabbana, Etro, Fay, Fendi, Salvatore Ferragamo, Fiorucci, Frankie Morello, Genny, Gucci, Hogan, Iceberg, Kiton, La Perla, Loro Piana, Marni, Antonio Marras, Missoni, Moncler, Moschino, MSGM, N°21, Prada, Richmond, Ermanno Scervino, Tod's, Trussardi, Valentino and Versace to name the most significant.
Examples of major fashion brands which are specialized mainly at womenswear are Agnona, Luisa Beccaria, Laura Biagiotti, Blumarine, Chiara Boni la petit robe, Capucci, Alberta Ferretti, Elisabetta Franchi, Giamba, Krizia, Max Mara, Miu Miu, Philosophy, Emilio Pucci, Simonetta Ravizza, Mila Schon and Twin-set Milano whilst the most important luxury houses which focus only on menswear and accessories for men are Brioni, Canali, Caruso, Corneliani, Lardini, MP Massimo Piombo, Stefano Ricci, Ermenegildo Zegna and Pal Zileri.
Luxury sportswear and streetwear have become general fashion trends, mixing high and low, formal and active style in one look and also in this segment Italy, apart from big luxury brands focused on ready to wear developing their own streetstyle lines or items such as Gucci, Fendi, Moschino and Prada or top brands with a strong sporty heritage like Bikkembergs, has got a few high end companies focused on this style like Marcelo Burlon County of Milan, GCDS, OFF White directed by American Virgil Abloh but based in Milan, Palm Angels, Danilo Paura, Stone island. In sportswear some of the most prominent houses are Diadora, Fila, Kappa and Lotto.
A few Italian designers head some important fashion brands outside Italy. Riccardo Tisci had been working for French luxury house Givenchy for twelve years until 2017 and in 2018 was named new Burberry creative director, Maria Grazia Chiuri after co-heading at Valentino together with Pier Paolo Piccioli now is the first female creative director ever at Dior, French fashion brand Rochas is created by Alessandro Dell'Acqua, Marco Colagrossi heads Ungaro after a few years under the directorship of Fausto Puglisi, Nino Cerruti founded his own Paris-based fashion house, Giambattista Valli's main ready to wear and high fashion lines are set in Paris and Stefano Pilati was for almost eight years Saint Laurent's head designer.
Among the newest labels or younger designers, the most prominent are Aquilano.Rimondi, Attico, Au jour le jour, Sara Battaglia, Angelos Bratis, Cristiano Burani, Paula Cademartori, Erika Cavallini, Gabriele Colangelo, Co-Te, Marco De Vincenzo, Dondup, Golden Goose Deluxe Brand, Stella Jean, Angelo Marani, Rodolfo Paglialunga, Maurizio Pecoraro, Christian Pellizzari, Piccione. Piccione, Andrea Pompilio, Fausto Puglisi, San Andres Milano, Francesco Scognamiglio, Ultrachic, Vivetta and Alberto Zambelli.
Other luxury labels which are mainly focused on the production of leather goods such as accessories, especially shoes, are Aquazzura, Baldinini, Ballin, Bontoni, Bruno Bordese, Roberto Botticelli, Rene Caovilla, Casadei, Alberto Guardiani, Gianmarco Lorenzi, Loriblu, Bruno Magli, Vic Matié, Moreschi, Alberto Moretti, Cesare Paciotti, Pollini, Fratelli Rossetti, Gianvito Rossi, Sergio Rossi, Santoni, A. Testoni, Mario Valentino, Giuseppe Zanotti design, while fashion brands or labels which produce primarily bags, totes, suitcases are Bertoni, Borbonese, Braccialini, Coccinelle, Cromia, Fedon, Furla, Gherardini, Mandarina Duck, Piquadro, Serapian, The Bridge, Valextra, Zagliani and Zanellato.
Italy also is home to many fashion magazines, such as Vogue Italia, Vanity Fair, Elle, Glamour, Grazia, Amica, Flair, and Gioia.
Other Italian accessory and jewelry brands, such as Luxottica, Marcolin, De Rigo, Safilo, Buccellati, Damiani, Vhernier, Pomellato, Morellato, Officine Panerai and Bvlgari are amongst the most important in the world.

Modern history

Fashion in Italy started to become the most fashionable in Europe since the 11th century, and powerful cities of the time, such as Venice, Milan, Florence, Naples, Vicenza and Rome began to produce robes, jewelry, textiles, shoes, fabrics, ornaments and elaborate dresses. Italian fashion reached its peak during the Renaissance. As Italy is widely recognized as the cradle and birthplace of the Renaissance, art, music, education, finance and philosophy flourished, and along with it, Italian fashion designs became very popular, Via dei Condotti, and Via de' Tornabuoni.

Cities

Italian fashion is dominated by Milan, Rome, and to a lesser extent, Florence, with the former two being included in the top 30 fashion capitals of the world. Nonetheless, there are numerous other cities which play an important role in Italian fashion.

Milan

In 2014, Milan was regarded as the world fashion capital, even surpassing New York, Paris, Rome and London. In 2011, Milan was ranked #4, behind London, New York, and Paris. Many of the major Italian fashion brands, such as Valentino, Versace, Prada, Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Marni, Iceberg, Missoni, Trussardi, Moschino, Dirk Bikkembergs, Etro, and Zegna are currently headquartered in the city. International fashion labels also operate shops in Milan, including an Abercrombie & Fitch flagship store which has become a main consumer attraction. Milan also hosts a fashion week twice a year, just like other international centres such as Paris, London and New York. Milan's main upscale fashion district is the "quadrilatero della moda", where the city's most prestigious shopping streets are held. The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the Piazza del Duomo, Via Dante and Corso Buenos Aires are other important shopping streets and squares.

Florence

is regarded by some as the birthplace and earliest centre of the modern fashion industry in Italy. The Florentine "soirées" of the early 1950s organized by Giovanni Battista Giorgini were events where several now-famous Italian designers participated in group shows and first garnered international attention. Florence has served as the home of the Italian fashion company Salvatore Ferragamo since 1928. Gianfranco Lotti, Gucci, Roberto Cavalli, Ermanno Scervino, Stefano Ricci, Patrizia Pepe, Enrico Coveri and Emilio Pucci were also founded and most of them are still headquartered in Florence. Other major players in the fashion industry such as Prada and Chanel have large offices and stores in Florence or its outskirts. Florence's main upscale shopping street is Via de' Tornabuoni, where major luxury fashion houses and jewelry labels, such as Armani and Bulgari, have their elegant boutiques. Via del Parione and Via Roma are other streets that are also well known for their high-end fashion stores.

Rome

is widely recognized as a world fashion capital. Although not as important as Milan, Rome is the world's 4th most important centre for fashion in the world, according to the 2009 Global Language Monitor after Milan, New York and Paris, and beating London. Major Italian luxury fashion houses and jewelry chains, such as Valentino, Bulgari, Fendi, Laura Biagiotti, Gattinoni and Brioni, just to name a few, are headquartered or were founded in the city. Also, other major labels, such as Chanel, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Armani and Versace have luxury boutiques in Rome, primarily along its prestigious and upscale Via dei Condotti. The Rome Fashion Week is an important global showcase.

Other cities

Although Milan, Rome and Florence are commonly regarded as the leading cities in Italian fashion, other cities, such as Venice, Vicenza, Turin, Naples and Bologna, are also important centres for Italian clothing design and industry. Venice, for instance, is the home of Italian fashion house Roberta di Camerino, which was founded in 1945. The brand is famous for its handbags, and is most notably associated with the creation of the it bag, a form of handbag which is recognisable due to its status symbol. Brands such as Max Mara and United Colors of Benetton, despite being major Italian brands, are not headquartered in Milan, Rome or Florence, yet, the former has its headquarters in Reggio Emilia, and the latter in Ponzano Veneto. Italian holding OTB held by Renzo Rosso, owner of different ready-to-wear brands such as Diesel and also fashion houses like Marni, Dutch label Viktor & Rolf and Belgian Maison Margiela, is headquartered in the countryside near Vicenza in the region of Veneto. Italian companies Cesare Paciotti and also Tod's, owned by businessman Diego Della Valle, Santoni, Bontoni are headquartered in the region of Marche, a very important manufacturing district for shoes and leather components in the Adriatic coast. Fashion houses Fabiana Filippi and Brunello Cucinelli's home is the region of Umbria and luxury brands Kiton and Harmont & Blaine were founded in Naples which is also another prominent area of the country for the manufacturing of apparel and accessories.

Fashion shows and fairs

The Milan Fashion Week takes place twice a year after the London Fashion Week and before the Paris Fashion Week. It is scheduled as the third of the four most important and global international ready-to-wear fashion weeks of the calendar during the so-called fashion month. Dates are determined by the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana. Some of the locations where fashion shows are held are Milan's Palazzo Reale, Palazzo Serbelloni, Padiglione Visconti, Spazio delle Cavallerizze at Leonardo Da Vinci museum and many others.
Another prominent platform for men's collections and new projects in fashion industry is Pitti Immagine in Florence at the Fortezza da Basso, held twice a year a few days before the Milanese man's fashion week.