Buyers Select: Cristina Simionato Peter Pan

Buyers Select:
Cristina Simionato
Peter Pan

Editorial

Edition 94

04.03.2022

Buyers Select takes you behind the scenes of your favorite stores to meet the people who choose what children will be wearing, explain the most exciting trends, talk about their market and the increasing interaction between physical and digital. Plus, they offer some suggestions about brands and companies.

The multibrand store founded in 1984 in Mirano, in the province of Venice, boasts a vast clientele from the nearby cities of Treviso and Padua and the rest of the Veneto region and other Italian areas. Proof that professionalism, continuous research, and passion for one's work have no boundaries. On the other hand, as the owner Cristina Simionato explains: entering the Peter Pan concept store is like being at home. And each customer receives personal styling advice, with a choice of around fifty kidswear brands from zero to 16 years old. The selection pays particular attention to comfort, quality materials, and sustainability. All aspects in which companies should invest more and more. Finally, the trader-entrepreneur is confident that the next summer edition of Pitti Bimbo will be fully back, also launching new projects and initiatives.

What are the most exciting kidswear trends?

How is this spring-summer season going?
It started well, primarily thanks to the sales of formal dresses. The interest in dressing children well has returned. The desire to buy new, refined, possibly colored garments has emerged, with a preference for unique patterns, perhaps Provencal. Without compromising on comfort and quality materials, which are now a must.

What are customers looking for today?
On the one hand, they are looking for valuable and comfortable garments; on the other, they love personalizing combinations and looks. They don't want traditional sets, but something special, different, unique. And this is why they choose to come to a multibrand store like mine: because I have always offered personal styling advice, filtering collections through my taste and my attention to fit, quality, and sustainability.

What are the most exciting kidswear trends?

What are the most exciting kidswear trends?
Boys and girls continue to love sportswear, but featuring something that stands out: now unique patterns and motifs make the difference, as well as distinctive details. For the little ones, practicality remains a must, but not declined in the usual solid-color rompers: floral and striped prints, unmissable in my multibrand store, as well as color, a must for this spring-summer season.

What would you like to see more from brands and companies?
First of all, I would like them to pay more and more attention to the materials: they must be comfortable - therefore, for example, correctly elasticized and never itchy - and, at the same time, easy to wash, with no need for dry cleaning. Furthermore, sustainability and ethics can no longer be ignored: when customers are educated about the content and the benefits, they appreciate and reward the brands most sensitive to these issues.

What are the most exciting kidswear trends?

How are you facing the omnichannel challenge?
More than the e-commerce dimension in its strict sense, I found social networks, starting with Instagram and Facebook and WhatsApp, very useful to establish a continuous and direct connection with customers. I often do live videos with them or record videos or voice messages where, for example, I explain combinations and suggest new looks.

How did you find Pitti Bimbo in January?
I was thrilled to be there: I found the organization excellent and particularly appreciated the many companies that got actively involved. They offered interesting collections, even single-product ones, not only made in Italy, but also from Northern Europe and Spain, in particular.

What do you expect from the next edition of 22-24 June?
I am confident that the event will return to its full format, with all its offer of established brands, lesser-known but equally valid labels, and niche names to offer an overview that genuinely reflects the market. I believe it is the right time to relaunch with projects capable of involving companies that recently engaged a little less with the fair and propose new initiatives to make Pitti even more proactive and stimulating for the world of kidswear, in which it remains the undisputed main reference.