The wheel of time has returned Massimo Nicosia to Pringle of Scotland. Nicosia had worked in the studio of the centuries-old knit brand before being tapped to run Nicole Farhi's menswear these past few seasons, but when Pringle's previous creative director, Alastair Carr, headed for the exit, Nicosia made his return. He may have the confidence of someone intimately familiar with the label, but the small presentation he and Pringle staged suggested he'd still be taking baby steps. For this first collection, the emphasis fell on pieces rather than overarching ideas—save the idea that Pringle should be knits first, last, and in between. Naturally, there were plenty of sweaters (in heavier gauges and finer, that latter in seamless layering pieces that recalled the company's circa 1815 origins as an underwear supplier), and outerwear featured knit paneling, insets, and lining when full knit wasn't possible. But Nicosia pronounced himself most interested in finding out how to knit outerwear, too. "That's going to be my challenge from now on," he said. "How to make Pringle a 100 percent knitwear collection." Doing so is going to require some smarts and some innovation, and Nicosia took a few steps in that direction, coating knit rainwear in Teflon for water resistance. While the Fall collection didn't shout directional fashion—certainly not in the way of his immediate predecessor's—advancement in style as well as structure is what Nicosia said his Pringle would be about. "Shakespeare meeting Courrèges" were his words.
