When meeting with Brunello Cucinelli to review his collections, one finds him roaming about the showroom, surrounded by a posse of good-looking models. Of different ages and body types, more glowingly healthy than super fit, and attractive in their groomed ease, the models really do look handsome in their Cucinellis. Even if one desperately tries to feign indifference, the effect they provoke in the (re)viewer is even more discombobulating because they look “real.” Like if they were actual boyfriends, husbands, brothers. “They’re all my employees,” Cucinelli reported, sounding amused. “They work in the factory at Solomeo as artisans, or in the shipping department, or as accountants or managers. Why do you look so surprised?”
Cucinelli actually tries all his designs on his employees: ”When they go for lunch at noon it looks like a fashion show,” he laughed. They’re allowed to buy all the clothes they want from the collections, being charged only for the cost of the fabric, which is obviously of excellent quality; it’s definitely quite the bargain. He asks for their feedback and advice on fit and styling, and takes their opinions very seriously. “We even discuss the lapels’ proportions most fastidiously,” he explained. “Here, it’s like a continuous fashion workshop. You never feel alone.”
The results of said workshop were on ample display. While in keeping with the well-established Cucinelli look, there were subtle tweaks on fit, which was slightly looser, and on proportions, with jackets and pants slightly longer: just-nuanced improvements, detected only by the trained eye and by the many diehard Cucinelli aficionados, but effective in giving the look a fresh update. As for the made-in-Italy fabrics, corduroy velvet was treated almost as cashmere, feathery light and supple, for comfortably stylish pantsuits paired with cloud-like alpaca sweaters. Shearling peacoats were likewise buttery soft. Styling was kept simple yet layered; colors were warm and tonal. Like everything else in the collection, they were tastefully blended and balanced with flair.
