Tod’s creative director Walter Chiapponi arrived to the preview of his pre-fall collection in Milan straight from the airport. A trip to New York left him jet-legged but upbeat as he was impressed by the new energy he witnessed Stateside, one breezing a different attitude and more subdued approach to fashion that signaled the maximalist days are to be left behind as the new year kicks off.

That’s good news for a designer who has proven to be keen to push a more understated take on luxury and to reinvent the high-end lifestyle Tod’s stands for with nonchalance and a pragmatic sense of ease.

In doing so, Chiapponi uses pre-collections as a laboratory to investigate the multiple uses of wardrobe staples, this time focusing mainly on the trenchcoat.

In this concise, urban-chic lineup, he manipulated the codes of the style to conjure different looks: He shortened a trenchcoat to offer a new version of a bomber jacket; multiplied pockets and added a drawstring at the waist to get a polished rendition of a safari jacket; cropped it to craft a functional skirt cinched by a logoed belt in contrasting color, or simply kept the design in its pure lines in a lightweight taupe option.

“The idea is to have one single message and repeat it over and over again,” Chiapponi said. The designer added rubberized effects via fisherman coats in burgundy or electric blue hues, and introduced mannish tailoring reworked in body-con proportions, including blazer jackets fitted to the female body and tucked in matching pants.

Imagining rainy days in a city, Chiapponi also exalted Tod’s craftsmanship via chunky boots, which added to ‘70s-inspired moccasins with a squared toe and the T-Case bag. Developed from a single piece of leather, the bag was folded in a soft, geometric shape, conveying the same unfussy appeal that Chiapponi infused into this wearable collection.