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2023 marked a return to form for the menswear fashion weeks, which had been cowed by the rise of co-ed formats during the pandemic. The momentum is set to continue this season, as Milan and Paris gear up to deliver plenty of buzzy shows and debuts, preceded as usual by venerable Italian trade event Pitti Uomo.
From a product perspective, menswear is expected to pick up where we left off for Spring/Summer, with streetwear becoming more refined and tailoring more playful. Experts predict a move away from minimalism, in line with an evolution in menswear style icons. Expect a growing emphasis on lending menswear traditions a twist, from experimenting with notions of masculinity and genderless design to finding new ways to use well-tested materials.
This experimentation is forecast to translate into growth. Men’s designer fashion is expected to rise at a faster rate than women’s in 2024, up 3.7 per cent to $35.5 billion (versus growth of 1.3 per cent to $57.8 billion, per Euromonitor).
First stop, Pitti
The 105th edition of Pitti Uomo opens in Florence on Tuesday and runs through 12 January, bringing together over 830 exhibitors. Among the highlights this season are shows from guest designers Magliano and SS Daley — who join an impressive past line-up that includes the likes of Martine Rose, Raf Simons, Jun Takahashi and Virgil Abloh.
It marks a return to Pitti for Luca Magliano, who held his first-ever show at the event in 2017. The 36-year-old designer has been on an upward trajectory since, winning LVMH’s Karl Lagerfeld Prize last year. The designer seeks to redefine Made in Italy with genderless clothes partially crafted from deadstock and upcycled vintage garments. His blending of polished tailoring with slouchy silhouettes, and insistence on breaking the rules, defines menswear’s new direction, writes Vogue Runway’s José Criales-Unzueta.
British designer Steven Stokey-Daley has also built a name for his unique take on menswear, which in his case riffs on British upper-class culture. Again, tailoring is a key component, but peppered with softer elements such as his now-famous duck cardigans. And again, he takes responsible production seriously by using deadstock materials and sourcing in the UK where he can. His shows are storytelling spectacles: for SS23 members of the UK’s National Youth Theatre cast read excerpts of love letters; for AW23, English actor Sir Ian McKellen opened the show by reciting a poem by Alfred Tennyson.
At Pitti, the 2022 LVMH Prize winner will stage a catwalk event “in his own characteristic style”, organiser Pitti Immagine shared — though whether and how he translates his quintessential Britishness for the Italian audience remains to be seen. “Steven Stokey-Daley transforms the British upper class into a queer-fashion fantasy,” said Francesca Tacconi, special events coordinator at Pitti Immagine, in a statement.
Evolving visions in Milan and Paris
Next up is Milan, from 12 to 16 January, which kicks off with Sabato De Sarno’s menswear debut for Gucci following the unveiling of his first womenswear collection in September to mixed reviews. It comes as the industry continues to speculate over the next steps of his predecessor, Alessandro Michele, whose shadow still hangs over the Kering-owned brand. De Sarno has offered glimpses into his menswear direction, dressing the likes of Pedro Pascal and A$AP Rocky for the Lacma Art + Film Gala, as well as Ryan Gosling for the Golden Globes, in understated Gucci suits.
“Gucci is the most anticipated show on the Italian schedule this menswear season,” says Vogue Business’s Luke Leitch. “Expect big names on the front row and, more importantly, a fresh sense of where De Sarno’s vision for the house is taking it.”
Sophie Jordan, menswear buying director at luxury e-tailer Mytheresa, says she hopes to see “something that feels new and exciting, and with the icons of the brand reinterpreted. Following the women’s show, I’m expecting a cleaner aesthetic and more elements that work for both day and night.”
The Milan calendar features 74 shows, appointments and events. Highlights will include Prada, Fendi, Dolce Gabbana, Zegna and both Emporio and Giorgio Armani.
Among the shows to watch will be a runway debut for Stone Island: the Italian sportswear brand founded by Massimo Osti that rose to popularity with UK football fans during the 1990s and is enjoying something of a renaissance. The Moncler-owned company is embarking on a new chapter under CEO Robert Triefus, who joined from Gucci in May 2023. It also shows that Moncler chairman and chief executive Remo Ruffini’s big ambitions for Stone Island are coming into fruition. “Stone Island reminds me a lot of Moncler 10 years ago,” Ruffini said at the time of acquisition in December 2020.
Another well-loved Italian menswear label, also founded by Osti — CP Company — is showing in presentation format, as demand for heritage sportswear with high-quality technical fabrics continues. (Osti will launch a new brand, Massimo Osti Studio, during Paris men’s week.)
Mytheresa’s Jordan points to the outdoor influence as a key trend in menswear, predicting that we’ll see more luxury brands fuse their “refined aesthetic” with technical details and fabric innovation.
In Paris, which runs from 16 to 21 January, all eyes will again be on Louis Vuitton, with Pharrell Williams showing on day one of men’s week. It will mark the designer’s third show for the house following his blockbuster debut show and pre-fall in Hong Kong. “I am expecting bigger and buzzier for the second [main collection] show. Entertainment is his industry. I also feel confident in the collection after such a strong start, as he demonstrated he understands what the customer wants,” says Jordan.
What follows will be a season similar in scale to last year’s (the AW24 season features 74 brands including 42 shows and 32 presentations; down slightly on the 48 shows and 33 presentations for AW23). Highlights on the following day, 17 January, feature Givenchy — whose AW24 collection has been designed by the studio following the departure of Matthew Williams — Wales Bonner and LGN Louis Gabriel Nouchi, which is the designer’s first show since his Andam Prize win. Other keenly anticipated shows include Rick Owens, Dries Van Noten, Dior Homme, Loewe and Kidsuper.
Balmain, Valentino and Gmbh are returning to the show calendar in Paris, while newcomers include Japanese brand Auralee, US brand Winnie New York (joint winner with ERL of the 2022 Karl Lagerfeld Prize) and Chinese brand Ziggy Chen.
Absentees include Saint Laurent, Ludovic de Saint Sernin, Koché and Marine Serre. Saint Laurent has mostly favoured destination shows for menswear in recent seasons, showing its SS24 men’s collection in Berlin (Saint Laurent creative director Anthony Vaccarello has only once presented a men’s collection on the Paris schedule. The show for AW23 was held in the Bourse de Commerce, which houses François Pinault’s art collection). De Saint Sernin will stage a one-off runway show in New York on 11 February, while Marine Serre will present a co-ed collection during the womenswear season.
Newcomers to the official presentation programme are Indian brand Kartik Research, a LVMH Prize 2023 semi finalist; Paris-based label Meta Campania Collective co-founded by Jon Strassburg, who was previously Bottega Veneta’s chief merchandising officer; and French label Ouest Paris, founded in 2022 by 33-year-old Parisian designer Arthur Robert with a focus on denim and an Americana-inspired aesthetic. Kartik Research founder Kartik Kumra sources his fabrics from across India (including from Pracheen, a renowned block-print specialist) and manufactures exclusively in Delhi. “The idea is heritage fabrics,” he told Luke Leitch last year. Off calendar, Tanaka is staging its first Paris presentation. The unisex brand was founded in 2017 by Sayori Tanaka, whose résumé includes Uniqlo and Yohji Yamamoto.
As usual, Jacquemus will hold a show outside of Paris Fashion Week following the see-now-buy-now model — meaning it will present its SS24 collection. The French designer brand will stage a co-ed show titled “Les Sculptures” on 29 January at the Fondation Maeght in the South of France. The menswear category represents approximately 15 per cent of the brand’s sales, Simon Porte Jacquemus told Vogue Business in June. CEO Bastien Daguzan who unexpectedly left in December, had touted menswear as an area “full of potential”.
Last menswear season, we left off with “men wanting to dress up for any occasion”, according to Harrods menswear buying manager Marc Schmitt. This season, designers will be angling to meet their demand.
