Fashion Magazine: buyers enthusiastic about the return to an in-person event and budgets rise

Fashion Magazine:
buyers enthusiastic about the return to an in-person event and budgets rise

News

Edition 93

26.07.2021

Trends, sentiments and forecast

Emotions, energy, motivation, ideas: childrenswear buyers chose these terms to weigh up the recent edition of Pitti Bimbo 93, held in person once again, albeit with lower numbers than pre-pandemic editions. It was a rendezvous that was almost therapeutic, where independent retailers had a chance to strengthen the relationship with their partner brands, discover new sales opportunities, encounter their competitors and gather inspiration from menswear thanks to the novelty of the concomitance with Pitti Uomo 100. The sentiment about the next spring-summer season appears to be veering towards optimism and, although caution is still de rigueur, some have decided to leave the comfort zone of the brands which showed resilience during the pandemic in order to back new labels.

1_Barbara-Frères_Barbara-Frerès-fur-Kinder

Barbara Frères für Kinder / Düsseldorf

“I was really excited to be able to return to Florence and full of energy, ready to discover the new brands and trends for SS 2022, as well as to meet my partners. The fair, which I have already attended 86 times, has always given me lots of inspiration and new ideas but, above all, a desire to keep moving on. I found the idea of presenting Pitti Bimbo and Pitti Uomo concomitantly to be interesting: the children of today are the adults of tomorrow and knowing about men’s fashion trends helps us to dress boys better and identify the future developments of the mini sizes. With regard to the Pitti Connect digital platform, I have been following it right from the start because for me it conveys all the innovations, trends and lots of information about brands, fairs and trends. Talking about trends, sustainability is the absolute trend, as demonstrated by the products in natural organic fibers, like viscose obtained from bamboo or SeaCell fibers that use seaweed. At this edition I found lots of brands that I particularly liked, including Twin&Chic, Versari and Marlù Couture, as well as Amelie et Sophie, Hanssop and the Danhera fragrance brand. We intend to increase our budget for the next summer season even though it will remain below pre-pandemic levels: we have to continue to be prudent and not take on too much risk”.

TWIN&CHIC

PADIGLIONE DELLE GHIAIA / 20

SPAIN

VERSARI ACCESSORIES

PADIGLIONE DELLE GHIAIA / 27

ITALY

Cristina Simionato Peter Pan / Mirano (Ve)

“It was lovely to go back to Pitti Bimbo, energetic, with positive effects on a psychological level as well. I needed to be here and to face my colleagues as allies in the situations we are experiencing. I also enjoyed inhaling the mood of Pitti Uomo: it gave me an idea for formulating products for little boys. Certainly, I would have liked to see double the number of children’s clothing stands and I hope that, after this new in-person beginning, we will have a “smashing” January edition. Possibly employing an intense promotional campaign with traditional and digital systems, as we independent stores are also doing with our clients through telephone calls, e-mails and communications via social media networks”.

The physical event should move forward in parallel with the digital dimension: I frequent Pitti Connect, albeit not a huge amount, and I have noticed that it has grown a lot since the launch. We are certainly going to have to get used to the “phygital” format. With regard to the proposals seen at the fair, I loved the floral pattern trend like the one from Shirtaporter, the little slippers from Collégien, the sorbet colors, the crocheted proposals and the Seventies references. I also found Danhera’s fragrances and ecofriendly washing machine laundry products very interesting. Sustainability has positioned itself in Florence: I noticed a lot of research into organic materials and sustainable working processes. Amongst moms this is still a niche phenomenon but they find the topic interesting when I explain it to them. I will increase the budget a bit for the next warm season, eliminating some brands, introducing some new ones and banking on the ceremonial world with greater serenity.

SHIRTAPORTER KIDS

PADIGLIONE DELLE GHIAIA / 21

ITALY

COLLÉGIEN

PADIGLIONE DELLE GHIAIA / 28

FRANCE

DANHERA ITALY

PADIGLIONE DELLE GHIAIA / 16

ITALY

Marco Scherillo Siola / Napoli

“The return to Pitti Bimbo had a particular, almost emotional effect on me. The in-person formula is fundamental, it was really needed, especially after this long period of absence. For the world of children this remains the sector’s biggest fair and we can’t do without it. As far as I’m concerned, I always prefer in-person contact to digital platforms that I don’t frequent much. I found the concomitance with Pitti Uomo to be interesting and hope that the initiative will be repeated. Many menswear brands do childrenswear as well and this makes it possible to see how the collections are developed for adults.

Moreover, it allows us to compare ourselves with a similar sector. If we have to talk about trends, eco-sustainability is the mistress here. With regard to materials, I appreciated the particularly innovative ones used by Herno (Editor’s note; lacquered effect glossy nylon in bold colors and Gore-Tex Infinium). Our budget for next summer? I am optimistic about the future: we will definitely be buying more, especially those brands that, despite the complicated period, have had excellent performances”.

HERNO

TEATRINO LORENESE / 1

ITALY

TWIN&CHIC

VERSARI ACCESSORIES

MARLÙ

AMELIE ET SOPHIE

HANSSOP

DANHERA ITALY

SHIRTAPORTER KIDS

COLLÉGIEN

DANHERA ITALY

HERNO