Milan heralds trimmed-down menswear fashion week
The menswear fashion week for the Spring/Summer 2024 collections that will be held in Milan on June 16-20 has presented a programme in line with its last edition. In total, Milan Fashion Week Men will feature 72 events, between runway shows, presentations and special events, as opposed to 79 in January. As in the last session, the calendar comprises 22 runway shows (including a double one by Giorgio Armani), spread out over two full days and two half-days, plus five shows in digital format that will be broadcast on the event’s last morning, on Tuesday June 20, before the fashion week baton will be handed over to Paris.
Carlo Capasa, president of the Italian Fashion Chamber (CNMI), has underlined that the calendar is still provisional: “We keep receiving participation requests,” he said. In recent seasons, Milan Fashion Week Men has lost a few top names, like Versace, Moschino and Missoni, but will rely on some prestigious come-back shows, like that of Valentino, which will open the week in the early afternoon of Friday June 16. Except for the two shows staged in Milan because of the pandemic in September 2020 and February 2021, the Italian luxury label had last showed its menswear collection in the Lombardy capital in 2012.
Another notable come-back is that of Milan-based British designer Neil Barrett, who had eschewed runway shows since the Covid-19 outbreak in January 2020, opting instead for video presentations. Also back is 44 Label Group, which debuted on the Milanese runways in January 2022, made a repeat performance the following June, and then gave last winter’s edition a miss. 44 Label Group is a new luxury streetwear label launched by Berlin DJ-producer Max Kobosil, backed by Milanese businessman Claudio Antonioli.
Another eagerly awaited show will be staged on Sunday June 18 by Andersson Bell, a label that blends Korean street style with Scandinavian minimalism. Andersson Bell was founded in 2014 in Seoul and is designed by DoHun Kim. It struck gold after being endorsed by Jungkook, the celebrity frontman of K-Pop band BTS.
These come-backs and new names will compensate for the withdrawals of Fendi and Gucci. The former has decided to show near Florence on June 15, during Pitti Uomo, at Fendi Factory, its new Tuscan craftsmanship hub. While Gucci has for the time being put runway shows on hold, waiting to unveil the first collection by new creative director Sabato De Sarno in September. The label will nevertheless take part in Milan Fashion Week, presenting its menswear collection and an exhibition celebrating the 70th anniversary of its famous horse-bit loafers. Also missing from the calendar are K-Way, which usually shows during the winter season, and Italian label Family First, which joined the Milanese show calendar in June 2022.
However, most of the Italian fashion heavyweights will be showing, from Giorgio Armani to Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Etro, Dsquared2 and Zegna, alongside some of Italy’s emerging new names, like MSGM, Magliano, JordanLuca and Federico Cina. Not to mention some up-and-coming international labels that in recent seasons have chosen Milan to showcase their collections, like British labels Charles Jeffrey Loverboy and JW Anderson, and Dhruv Kapoor from India. The presentation programme, which features 30 labels (plus four invitation-only events) includes six new names: Maccapani, Maison Laponte, Marcello Pipitone – Bonola, Mcm, Setchu and Skin of Nature.
The programme also features the Fashion Film Festival Milano, which this year will launch the world's first streaming platform for fashion films. From June 12 to 19, it will broadcast the 274 shorts selected for the festival’s ninth edition. The event, run by Constanza Cavalli Etro, will explore the metaverse for the first time, adding a 16th prize to its string of awards, for the best metaverse fashion film.
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