New! Issue 81 of WeAr Global Magazine

New! Issue 81 of WeAr Global Magazine

Season Opener, Footwear Special & Outerwear Focus

Welcome to 2025! This issue will feed you the best fashion trends, the latest designers,  and what to look out for.  Find out about the latest updates on Outerwear and get a real blueprint to making your retail store a success. Get fashion perspectives for 2025 with strategies and outlooks alongside the innovations to look out for. Learn about new brands in the Lookbook section and get inspired by the creative design this Storebook offers, featuring the best in both multi-lable and mono-brand stores.

Available via our digital bookstore here

‘Game Changers’: MICAM celebrates footwear makers leading the style revolution

‘Game Changers’: MICAM celebrates footwear makers leading the style revolution

MICAM, the International Footwear Show, is honouring footwear makers with a new communication campaign to celebrate their excellence at its upcoming edition, taking place from 23 to 25 February at Fiera Milano.

“We have chosen to dedicate this year’s institutional campaign to the extraordinary people who drive the footwear industry forward. Their craftsmanship, expertise, and profound knowledge leave a lasting impact. Footwear makers are the guardians of an ancient tradition, yet they lead the way in constant innovation. Season after season, they transform their heritage by introducing cutting-edge materials, pioneering techniques, and boldly shaping the future of design and style – all while embracing sustainability. They are the ones rewriting the rules of the game. That’s why we want to celebrate them as true ‘Game Changers,’ making this concept the cornerstone of our new communication campaign,” states Giovanna Ceolini, President of MICAM and Assocalzaturifici.

Being a “Game Changer” means embracing fresh ideas and driving innovation to reshape market dynamics – paving the way for meaningful change.
This is why MICAM is celebrating the key players of the footwear manufacturing industry—companies that prioritize innovation and explore new frontiers to keep this dynamic industry evolving and distinctive.

The retailers and manufacturers in this unique field consistently challenge conventions, edition after edition. By deeply understanding the past, they are able to innovate and redefine the future. MICAM’s mission is to reinforce its role as a global reference point for those who look ahead with ambition – resilient in the face of challenges and ready to reinvent themselves with courage, determination, and passion.

Ralph Lauren receives Presidential Medal of Freedom

Ralph Lauren receives Presidential Medal of Freedom

Ralph Lauren became the first fashion designer to receive the prestigious Presidential Medal of Freedom.

President Biden bestowed Mr. Lauren with the nation’s highest civilian honor at the White House. The Medal recognizes Lauren’s contributions as a visionary and prolific fashion designer, trailblazing entrepreneur, innovative business leader, and dedicated philanthropist.

For more than six decades, Lauren has celebrated the essence of American culture and served as an ambassador of American taste, style, and culture. He has shaped the way the world perceives America’s heritage and values in the way he crafts unique stories of aspiration, tradition, and individuality through his designs – inspiring all of us in the process. He has created a global lifestyle brand and redefined – and defined – American style.

Lauren has received many prestigious honors, including the James Smithson Bicentennial Medal, France’s Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, and an Honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE).

He led the efforts to preserve the Star-Spangled Banner and provided substantial financial support to protect the historic flag.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom was established by President John F. Kennedy in 1963, honoring individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant endeavors. Recipients of this honor include Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., President Ronald Reagan, Maya Angelou, Mother Teresa, Billie Jean King, and Simone Biles.

Christian Lacroix acquired by Sociedad Textil Lonia

Christian Lacroix acquired by Sociedad Textil Lonia

Spanish company Sociedad Textil Lonia (STL) is acquiring 100% of Christian Lacroix, the French fashion house synonymous with 1980s exuberance, in what the company is describing as ‘a private transaction’. The Christian Lacroix brand had been previously owned by the Falic Group, also owners of US retail group Duty Free Americas.

Since the creation of the fashion house in 1987 by the LVMH Group, Christian Lacroix, its first Artistic Director, laid the foundations of a unique, exuberant, colorful, and baroque style, rooted in the designer’s birthplace of Arles. His Spanish inspirations, vibrant colors, and innovative shapes imbued with theatricality captivated the fashion world, bringing a breath of fresh air to the industry. Quickly, his creations, such as the “pouf” skirt, were worn by the biggest international stars, including Madonna, Julianne Moore, and Uma Thurman. The collections traveled the world, and the most influential fashion editors lent him their support.

Italian footwear industry economic data for the first 9 months of 2024

Italian footwear industry economic data for the first 9 months of 2024

The Italian footwear industry records a decline in the main indicators in the first nine months of 2024. Declines in exports (-9.2% in value on January-September 2023) with the sharp reduction in orders, had heavy repercussions on production activity (-18.9% Istat index of industrial production) and turnover (-9.7%).

This is the picture taken by the report of the Confindustria Accessori Moda Study Center for Assocalzaturifici, which shows how, with the effect of the post-Covid rebound over, and after a 2023 of substantial stability (at least in value), 2024 closes with negative signs in all the main variables. Estimating a sectoral turnover that the first 12-month projections show slowing by -9.3 percent, to 13.2 billion euros (almost 1.4 billion less than the previous year) and with inevitable effects on business demographics and employment.

“In the third quarter of 2024 there was no turnaround in the sector’s economic situation,” explains Giovanna Ceolini, president of Assocalzaturifici, ”on the contrary, more than 60 percent of companies closed with turnover below the levels achieved in the same period of 2023, with reductions of more than -20 percent for 1 out of 5 companies. The cumulative data for the first 9 months therefore confirm the difficulties that had already emerged in the first part of the year. The reflective performance of many major international economies, in Europe and outside the EU, and a geopolitical context that is anything but favorable, which has seen the addition, in addition to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, of another front of instability in the Middle East, have severely penalized footwear exports in 2024. If in the European Union sales show fairly moderate declines (-2.6 percent in value overall, with -2 percent in France and -6.2 percent in Germany), on non-EU markets the drop is -15.3 percent. Results on which were undoubtedly also weighed by the slowdown suffered by many luxury brands, whose development had contributed in recent years to sustaining sector dynamics.”

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays!

The WeAr team wishes their readers, clients and visitors a very happy holiday season! May these days bring you happiness, love and joy.

Montblanc celebrate 100 years of Meisterstück in Chengdu

Montblanc celebrate 100 years of Meisterstück in Chengdu

Montblanc celebrated the milestone anniversary of its iconic Meisterstück writing instrument during an exclusive event in Chengdu at the end of November. First unveiled in Los Angeles in May, the 100 Years of Meisterstück brand campaign, written and directed by American filmmaker Wes Anderson, now travels to the city of Chengdu to add another seminal chapter to the writing icon’s centenary celebrations, following the opening of Montblanc’s first flagship store in the city, the Montblanc Chengdu Taikoo Li Boutique.

Just as the new flagship boutique introduced a design concept blending Montblanc’s DNA with Chengdu’s inimitable creative spirit, the brand event held at the Dong’An Ge Hotel immersed guests into the brand campaign’s distinctive Montblanc universe, infused with the local flair of Chengdu.

The venue was reimagined to transport guests into the world of the brand campaign, with recreations of its various recognizable details such as the library room, the mountain setting and the overall color palette, all while spotlighting the evening’s honoree, the Meisterstück.

The evening built to a crescendo with creatively reimagined performances featuring exhilarating drumming and Sichuan opera acts, offering an innovative twist on the traditional Chinese art forms. Following the mesmerizing acts, the celebration reached its peak as guests gathered to commemorate the centenary of Meisterstück with a grand birthday cake unveiling.

Louis Vuitton launches 2nd edition of its Accessories Design Graduates Initiative

Louis Vuitton launches 2nd edition of its Accessories Design Graduates Initiative

Louis Vuitton has announced the second edition of its Accessories Design Graduates Initiative, an annual competition aimed at celebrating and recognizing the innovation, creativity and talent of graduating fashion, arts and design students. This initiative reflects Louis Vuitton’s commitment to elevate and promote exceptional craftsmanship in leather goods and accessories.  

Open to final-year Bachelor and Master students at 32 prestigious partner European and American schools and universities, the competition aims to empower the next generation of leather goods and accessories creators. Winners will have an opportunity to work with the House’s design teams, fostering a continuous exchange and creative dialogue around design, leather goods and accessories.

Students from partner universities are invited to apply for the competition until February 2, 2025 on a dedicated website.

‘Gianfranco Ferré dentro l’obiettivo’ exhibition

‘Gianfranco Ferré dentro l’obiettivo’ exhibition

From December 6 2024 until March 9 2025, the exhibition “Gianfranco Ferré dentro l’obiettivo”, organised by Forte di Bard and curated by the Gianfranco Ferré Research Centre of Politecnico di Milano and CZ Fotografia, offers an unprecedented journey dedicated to the great architect and fashion designer, eighty years after his birth.

The itinerary of the exhibition is designed to tell the story of Gianfranco Ferré’s work through photographic images, black and white prints, colour prints, slides and samples, enriched with garments, sketches and drawings.

The protagonist of the narrative is the photographic section of the Gianfranco Ferré Historical Archive: over 90 works, never before exhibited, by eight masters of fashion photography who worked with Ferré on iconic advertising campaigns: Gian Paolo Barbieri, Guy Bourdin, Michel Comte, Patrick Demarchelier, Peter Lindbergh, Steven Meisel, Bettina Rheims and Herb Ritts.

20 YEARS OF WeAr – AN ANNIVERSARY ISSUE

20 YEARS OF WeAr – AN ANNIVERSARY ISSUE

20 YEARS OF WeAr – ANNIVERSARY ISSUE

Our brand new WeAr Global Magazine Anniversary Issue 80 is now out. This is a special edition, celebrating the past two decades of the best in fashion and footwear combined with art. You can find an extended special celebrating the best of fashion and footwear design alongside outstanding interior design. Of course, this issue also features the best in fashion trends, the latest designers,  and what to look out for. Get better insight and ideas through the featured reports from collaboration with different artists, to different industries. Get an overview of Leading Players in the fashion industry and experience the Winners of The Best Fashion Retailer of the World Award 2024. Learn about new brands in the Lookbook section and get inspired by the creative design this Storebook offers, featuring the best in both multi-label and mono-brand stores.

Get issue 80 in print or digital here

 

20 YEARS OF WeAr – THE BOOK

Plus, to celebrate 20 years of WeAr, for the first time the magazine is reprinted in a hard-cover format. Get this special collector’s item to celebrate the very best of fashion and art from the last 20 years. Available in English only, this special edition will also include the “Best of 20 years of WeAr” Special, printed on special paper, which will highlight some outstanding fashion and footwear items, alongside special store designs which the editorial team of WeAr has published in the past two decades. Get this special coffee table book as a celebration of fashion and art throughout 20 years.

Get your hands on ’20 Years of Wear – The Book’ here