SCISSOR HANDS: Guests at the Brioni boutique in Paris on Thursday could have their portraits cut into black card by silhouette artist Maurice Alexanian, who uses a technique dating back to the mid-18th century. It was an apt party trick for a cocktail gathering to showcase the Italian brand’s “Su misura,” or made-to-measure service.
“The sophistication of men is growing,” declared Brioni chief executive Francesco Pesci, noting that made-to-measure represents 25 percent of its tailored clothing business. While some men’s wear brands treat the service as a mere communications tool, Brioni considers it a core expertise, with some 200 tailors working at its facility in Penne, Italy, and its tailoring school, set up back in 1985, turning out 30pupils per year. “The oldest of our master tailors is younger than me: I’m 45; he’s 41,” Pesci marveled.
The luxury men’s brand, part of PPR, is gearing up for its fall-winter 2013 presentation on Jan. 14 in Milan, which will mark the debut of its new creative director, British designer Brendan Mullane, who previously held various positions in men’s wear design at such houses as Givenchy, Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Burberry and Alexander McQueen. Pesci said the event would be a “surprise,” but the format will not be a runway show, something Brioni first did for men’s wear back in 1952.