“Italians work a lot on product and in France, you work a lot on the marketing of product. If you integrate the two, I think you can have a great story and that’s what I was doing [at menswear brand Berluti] and what I’m doing [at Zegna].” – Alessandro Sartori, Artistic Director, Zegna (WWD, April […]
Digital connoisseurs and the challenge for menswear brands Read More »
Confession: I am not actually a believer in “best of” lists and rankings whether they are applied to universities, wines or films. Nor do I put much stock in them mainly because they inhibit any hint of nuance and promote confirmation bias. Yet these very drawbacks also explain I why have decided to concoct my
Best cities for bespoke tailoring: do sartorial rankings matter? Read More »
This past April I spent a wonderful Sunday afternoon with Claudio Italiano, his father Luigi, their new apprentice Gloria and friend Christina who helped translate our conversation. Becoming a tailor is difficult enough. But I would argue that becoming a Sicilian tailor (let alone a Sicilian tailoring house) is unusually demanding. After a few hours
Sicilian tailoring house Sartoria Italiano Read More »
I had the pleasure of interviewing Signore Palmisciano in April 2018. Despite numerous informal chats over the years, this was actually the first time I sat down and recorded a video interview with a Sicilian tailor. In SGST, I make it pretty clear that all the Sicilian tailors in my book deserve serious consideration but
Sicilian tailor Vittorio Palmisciano Read More »
After a very good walking tour of the Garment District led by Mike Kaback, I spent some time at Mood Fabrics on 37th St earlier this week. The store was actually the last stop of the walking tour which is very convenient. I last visited Mood about a year ago and picked up two tie
Before completing the second edition of SGST, I visited Palermo a couple of times last year to meet tailors. On one of these trips, I stumbled upon this sliver of a necktie shop just off of Via Roma between the main train station and Teatro Massimo. Beyond RTW ties, I also learned they also make
Artisanal tiemaker Antica Cravatteria Read More »
I was not able to see Signor Zacco on my most recent trip to Palermo this month. But he was among the the first Sicilian tailors I visited and profiled in my book back in 2011. Zacco is the rare solo bench tailor is first and last one to touch each jacket that leaves his workshop.
Giuseppe Zacco – A Palermo bench tailor Read More »
Based on my experience, Sicilian tailors tend to convey much less of their impressive heritage than their sartorial cousins further north in Italy and on the continent who convey the idea of a grand tailoring house. As I wrote in SGST, Sicilian tailoring heritage and hospitality are often materially expressed in far humbler terms – “The
Sartoria Crimi – the rare Sicilian tailoring house Read More »
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