MILAN — MP Massimo Piombo, the fashion brand founded by the eponymous designer in the early ‘90s — and one of Italian fashion’s gems for those in the know — is getting a makeover.
Piombo’s son, Carlo, is taking the lead at the family company, which has been offering men’s and women’s collections hinged on a subtle reinvention of Italian sartorialwear with the use of internationally sourced high-end fabrics and materials.
Known for its unfussy-chic aesthetics for tailoring, workwear and color sensibility, the MP Massimo Piombo brand will be known as Carlo Piombo going forward, with a new font and logo. But while the name may change, he plans to continue charting a slow approach to the fashion game.
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In 2018 Carlo’s father Massimo Piombo was named creative director for OVS, a large Italian retailer, overseeing all lines, including the Piombo upper contemporary collection.
“Nothing is going to change compared to the past. Product quality will remain intact, it’s just getting even more direct [to consumer] with limited quantity productions, in the vein of a really artisanal project,” Carlo Piombo said.
Unveiling the move, he described the brand he’s taking over as “not a fashion-driven label, or a product-centric one. It telegraphs more an idea of style.”
To be sure, its distinctive outerwear, for example — think houndstooth baby alpaca coats with rounded shoulders, cashmere field jackets and woolen twill double-breasted blazers — comprises timeless wardrobe staples with a modern undercurrent, priced between 600 euros and 3,000 euros.
Its fashion proposition puts the brand in a well-populated league of Italian labels such as Massimo Alba and Aspesi, known for their quintessentially Milanese style.
Carlo Piombo emphasized his commitment to preserve the brand’s ties with its many suppliers, located across Italy, the Scottish Highlands, the Andes, Mongolia and more, with whom the brand develops limited-run fabrics for its collections.
“I think the secret recipe of the brand has been the perfect fusion of old-school [elegance] with a modern touch. Fabrics may be hundreds of years old, but they remain very current and when you ply them into a sartorial, Made in Italy way, they really come to life,” Piombo said.
He aims to carry on his father’s fashion legacy, as well as business acumen.
Distribution has remained very selective, with about 100 accounts, mainly specialty, multibrand boutiques scattered across geographies. They include, among others, Dantendorfer in Austria, Beams in Japan and Dover Street Market in the U.S.
These are flanked by occasional pop-up activations in New York, Tokyo and Toronto, for example. “I try to create a direct and personal relationship [with end customers],” Piombo explained.
Having cemented a reputation in key markets such as South Korea, Japan, the U.S. and Canada, as well as Europe, Piombo doesn’t feel pressured to tap into other potentially lucrative geographies, such as the Middle East or China. “They could be business boons, but they are also less responsive to the level of product quality we offer,” Piombo said.
One wouldn’t say the same for Italy, its home country, where the brand has decided to only go direct. Piombo doesn’t plan to return to the traditional playbook of presenting collections as part of fashion weeks or trade shows, or setting up formal showroom operations, but will host an annual private sale in central Milan that attracts as many as 13,000 clients a year.