Italian fashion, especially luxury fashion, is an excellence in the entire world. Quality, workmanship, craftsmanship and creativity are in fact recognized in the textile industry as emblematic of Made in Italy and are appreciated in every part of the globe.
The great Italian maisons of Haute Couture, which have made fashion history, are still in the top ranks of the most prestigious brands that, season after season, dictate the standards of style and trends. Luxury Italian clothing collections, therefore, are the protagonists on the most exclusive catwalks of fashion capitals and the object of desire for millions of people.
Italian fashion: its origin and history
Today, all over the world, Italian fashion is synonymous with craftsmanship, quality of materials, creativity of designers and textile tradition that, although handed down from generation to generation, has not lost its most genuine and profound soul. The path to arrive at this consecration, however, starts from afar and initially takes its cue from French fashion.
Before the 1950s it was in fact France (with Paris as the leader and fashion capital) that set the standards of style and clothing, with all other fashion houses, including Italian ones, emulating and following. Only after World War II did Italy become aware of its textile strength and the enormous possibilities it could bring.
In 1946 in Turin the National Exhibition of the Art of Fashion, organized by Ente Moda, was inaugurated, while in 1949 it was the turn of the Italian Fashion Center in Milan. The real origin of Italian fashion as we know it today, however, is dated 1951: it was in this year that Giovan Battista Giorgini, a Count who exported high craftsmanship to the United States, organized the first fashion show in Florence to present Italian clothes and accessories to his American guests. This was followed by a second fashion show a few months later.
This led to the establishment of two new institutions: the Sindacato Italiano Alta Moda (SIAM) in Rome in 1953 and the Centro di Firenze per la Moda Italiana (CFMI) in 1954. These four cities thus became focal points for the development of Italian fashion and, over the course of those years, divided their tasks: Rome focused on haute couture, Florence on fashion-boutique, and Turin and Milan on garment-making.
They also gave birth to two new institutions: the Trade Union Chamber of Italian Fashion and the National Chamber of Italian Fashion. Italian fashion thus began to be exported to the United States and also to move toward prêt-à-porter as opposed to sartorial dress, gradually becoming one of the country’s leading industries.
In the 1960s, aided by the economic boom, the spread of more technological machinery, and the development of new materials, the clothing industry grew further, both from the perspective of high fashion and ready-to-wear. This transformed clothes into a motif of style and no longer a pure necessity, led to the emergence of the first youth collections and alternative trends (which broke out of the classic fashion patterns of the past), and gave rise to Italian fashion journalism, concentrated mainly in Milan, specialized photographers, and the figure of the fashion designer. Thus a new fashion system was born, with collections presented on the runway and strongly desired by stars and celebrities and a Made in Italy that began to take on increasing importance in this sector and that, from the 1990s onward, monopolized the world’s most prestigious catwalks.
The success of Italian luxury clothing
Why is Italian luxury clothing appreciated and highly sought after globally?
First of all, because of the high quality of the materials with which every single piece is produced and the utmost attention to even the smallest detail; then, because of the wisdom of the workmanship, the level of craftsmanship and the sartorial mastery that make each garment synonymous with unmistakable style and an emblem of the utmost elegance and precision. Other reasons are the excellence of Italian designers, who have rewritten the rules of international fashion and, year after year, dictate the most sought-after trends and, finally, for the exclusive approach, selectivity and prestigious experience that wearing this type of luxury clothing generates.
For all these reasons, Italian maisons make the difference and represent excellence in the luxury fashion industry.
