Dire Addio a Milano

The first assignment given to us for our blogs, was to show how we see Milan.  I made a Prezi presentation of pictures I found on google.  Really not knowing how I picture Milan, it was all I could do.  Now that I have lived here for a month, I am able to show you what the Milan lifestyle means to me.  And this time, I'll be showing you through my very own photos.

I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect on this trip.  It’s true when they say, “fashion changes every day.”  Every single day plans were changed, canceled, and rescheduled.  I don’t know how we managed to fit everything into just 1 month.  We saw and accomplished so much and I’m proud to be able to say I was here experiencing everything first hand. 

Picturing Milan in my mind before we came, all I thought about was the Alp Mountains, pasta, and mopeds.  A little corny I know, but I have never been to Europe.  Sadly, I never got to see the Alps, but I saw so much more.  Ladies drove the mopeds in 4-inch Manolo Blahnik’s, the Duomo di Milano was like something I’ll never be able to describe to anybody and the pizza and pasta makes me never want to eat an American meal again.  Milano is a beautiful place where the people dress just as beautifully.  I am so grateful for all of the experiences that have come my way and will never forget a single day that I was here.  I would love to live here one day, even if it is only for a little while, it truly is la bella vita.

Milan is very fast-pace but very relaxed at the same time.  Nobody is trying to get internet, or running around with a Blackberry attached to their hand.  Milanese people have siesta in the afternoon, and take their time enjoying their life and loved ones.  The culture here is incredible and very different from that of America.  When I picture Milan, I will forever picture the bold clothing everybody wears, and the way everything just shuts down in the middle of the afternoon.  Everything about Milan is beautiful.

We didn’t just experience the Italian culture first hand, but also the Italian fashion industry.  We had great opportunities such as: visiting the Vogue offices, a Vogue photo shoot, White Sposa, White Sposa Magazine, Vladimiro Gioia’s factory, the Pink & Chic offices, some fashion institutes, numerous museums, 3 fashion shows, Pitti Market, and much more.  The things we have seen and experiences we have been given are priceless and helped all of us grow.  Hearing about so many different aspects of the fashion industry really makes you think about where you want to go in your career. 

 

Because of this trip, I now know what I want to do, and have a greater understanding of what that entails.  I want to be a buyer, just like I always have, but also would love to work on the PR side of the industry for a period of my career.  I know the hard work I will have to put in to reach my goals, and am excited to start doing so.

The Last Supper

Today we got to go see Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper.  It was amazing to see an artifact like that.  It is such a famous work of art and you can really see why.  The painting takes up the entire wall and takes your breath away. The attention to detail is just nothing less than outstanding.

Upon entering the room where the Last Supper is located, you have to go through a series of small rooms.  The doors will close around you while they blow air on you to get any particles off of your body that could possibly destroy the painting.  After going through about three rooms, you finally enter the room with the Last Supper.  The Last Supper represents Jesus Christ and his twelve apostles.  In Leonardo da Vinci’s interpretation of this scene, Christ has just told his apostles that one of them will betray him.  This is why in the painting all of the apostles look confused and have un-calm body language.  You also notice that “John” has a very feminine appearance in the painting and is said to actually be Mary Magdalene.

On the wall opposite from The Last Supper is another painting.  This second painting is the Crucifixion, which was created by Giovanni Donato Montorfano.  It was just incredible to see how these works of art can be restored and enjoyed today.

Cultural Assignment #3 - Four Stores

Outside of Angela Caputi Giuggiu

The purpose of being sent to all four stores was to experience the different types of retail stores that Italy has to offer. We were sent to a textile store (Lisa Corti), a home goods store (Bellora), a jewelry boutique (Angela Caputi), and a high-end glass boutique (Venini). We felt that all of the stores are considered specialty shops that you wouldn’t go to unless you knew of them. They may have a few other stores in different areas but they all gave off the feeling of a specialty boutique. Another commonality between the stores was their use of all hand-crafted merchandise using natural materials. In addition the stores were green companies.

Outside of Lisa Corti

 

            With the trend of going green, these stores would most definitely fit into the American culture. Through their use of natural materials and limited production, they offer an exclusive product. In order for these stores to move into the American culture they would need to pay special attention to the location of their store and the market of the area. Upon entering the US market these stores need to stay consistent with their appearance of a boutique, their standard of quality, and Italian culture.

Outside of Venini

            The impact on the industry is mainly coming from the traditional production method of their goods. Not only is the emphasis based on the quality, but on the visual presentation of the merchandise. Lisa Corti did not only offer quality merchandise in her textile emporium, but also in her high quality showroom. Within this showroom she allows up and coming designers to show their work.   All of the locations were created in minimalistic way to further allow the emphasis to be placed on the merchandise.

Outside of Bellora

            All of the stores were unique in their own way. We were glad that we got the opportunity to visit all of them and learn more about the quality standards that are offered in Italy.

Istituto Carlo Secoli - Fashion School

Today we got to visit one of the fashion schools here in Milano.  It was called Istituto Carlo Secoli and we were able to speak to the President, Stefano Secoli.  Before we began speaking we got to watch a runway show which is the final project given to each student before they graduate.  They are given a theme and asked to create eight pieces to contribute to the show.  It was amazing to see what some of the students have come up with.

Stefano Secoli spoke to us about the difference between industry and atelier.  Industry refers to the pret-a-poter market (ready-to-wear), while atelier refers to haute couture.  Designers and stylist have to find a balance between what they both want in order to create a great fashion show with pieces that are both affordable and wearable.  I also learned about how problems occur in the production stage of products.  This is where most errors occur because most of the time, production is done by an outside source.  In order to avoid any miscommunications, designers need to find a link between them and their production company.  Mr. Secoli stresses this link to his students and teaches them how to create it.

While we were taking a tour of the school we saw many classrooms with students sewing and working on patterns.  All I could think of was Apparel Quality Analysis.  This is a course I took at Johnson and Wales and was asked to create a dress.  Luckily, I was given a pattern to follow, but sizing garments and putting them together isn't as simple as one may think.  It took a lot of work, a lot of patience, and a lot of bandaids.  In the end, I was chosen to model my groups finished product.  The dress we created could never compare to the pieces that the students at this school were creating.  The work they produced was so amazing and much more advanced.  I don't want to be a designer, but I would love to be able to produce work of that quality someday.

White Sposa Magazine

Yesterday, we took a trip over to White Sposa magazine.  Seeing the differences between them and some of the other bridal magazines they compete with was amazing.  Hands down, they should have no competition.  Their product is unique, ahead of it's time, and over all better.  They put thought into everything, including the quality of their paper.  I also thought it was interesting to see how they always leave the first two pages of every single issue blank.  They do this to show what the theme of the entire magazine is going to be.  It is very expensive for magazines to leave blank pages inside of an issue.  White Sposa has made a clear statement that they are more concerned about the quality of their work and in the long run they know they "won't disappear because they are not commercial."

There was one particular issue that was produced that stood out to me more than the rest.  In this issue White Sposa decided to use only Italian photographers and fashion to showcase what Italy has to offer.  This is very uncommon and very unique.  I thought it was a nice tribute.

White Sposa made it clear they would love to expand into the United States, and I would love to see them their one day.  They are a top bridal magazine and continue to grow.  Even though they have been forced to make some cuts because of the economy, they have maintained the same high quality for lower prices.

Tempo Libero

This weekend was a free weekend to sleep in and explore.  It was nice to not be worried about getting somewhere for a certain time.  We could just get lost and find new stores and figure out how to get home at our own convenience.  I was really excited to explore around Duomo.  I know I’ve been there almost every day, but I always go down the same main road, so this weekend I decided to break that path and explore the side streets.  I found a ton of new stores and some great places to eat. 

This weekend we were also assigned a cultural assignment.  We were given four store names and had to find them.  Finding the addresses was simple, but locating them on the map was a little more of a challenge.  Once we knew where we were going we all decided to go together as a group.  All four of the stores were closed when we got there, but we were able to look inside and they all looked really interesting.  Very different from stores we see in the United States, but could find their niche in our market if they were to go international.  There are no department stores here in Milan.  So small stores such as these are where you people would have to go for home goods.  We don’t see this to often in the states,  this is why I think that the stores we saw that had home goods, can really find their niche and do well if they were to go international. 

Pitti Cultural Assignment

Christine doesn’t like bright colors because with her pale skin, they don’t look good.  So she sticks to neutral colors.  Color is only used in her accessories.  As a buyer, she would be hesitant to purchase a brightly colored garment because she would picture it on herself, and it would not look good.  Christine also observed buyers were trying clothes on, maybe for fit, or just to see how it looked on them.  If the garment doesn’t look good on them, they might be tentative to purchase it.  Trying the garments on would only be effective if they were only concerned with fit and shaping. 

In Kim’s opinion, it’s hard to mess up a nice button-down shirt.  However, she found the elbow patch details on the shirts very unappealing.  A subtle plaid button down shirt is a nice casual to semi-dressy style, but adding the elbow patches is trying to make it something that it shouldn’t be.  A nice corduroy blazer with elbow patches looks great on a salt-and-pepper haired gentleman, but on a frat boy in a pink plaid button down shirt it just doesn’t work. 

Bobbie’s personal self-reference criterion is when men wear matching plaid on plaid.  While at Pitti, we all noticed how many suits were solid plaid patterns and the pants matched the jacket perfectly.  She might be a little weary to buy both pieces together as a set.  But seeing that it is in-fact a current trend, she would have to get past her own opinions to give her customer what they want.

Brittany does not like feminine patterns on men’s clothing.  Floral patterns have become a major trend in men’s fashion.  While she loves a good floral print dress, she can not see a floral button down or suit on a male.  She recognizes that European males are more accepting of a feminine style, wearing feminine colors and patterns.  But in the United States, males are not as willing to show their softer sides through fashion.  While bright colors and patterns are welcomed at Pitti, a trade show in America may have more muted, masculine neutrals instead.

Q does not like harem pants.  She feels like the groin area is too long and it is uncomfortable against the skin; it chafes.  Added to the chafing, the pants just look awkward if not worn correctly; they are not for every body type. Here in Europe, they are a big trend, both male and female.  As a buyer, Q would have to put how she feels about the pants to side and buy into the trend.

Despite our own personal prejudices, we’re aware of the current trends and will put our SRC’s aside for the benefit of the customer.  We are aware of our aversions to certain colors, patterns, and fabrics but agree that our customer’s needs come first.  As a buyer, it is necessary to remove these personal prejudices from the buying process.