A Pitti Uomo that, for many of those present, was a pleasant surprise. In short: it went better than expected. Nothing to get wildly excited about. But the exhibitors, who started out with very low expectations due to the epidemiological situation, welcomed to their stands Italian and European buyers who came to Florence with the concrete idea of doing business. An objective (probably) reinforced by the fact that Pitti would be the only men’s fair to be held regularly in attendance at this start of 2022.
Pitti went better than expected
Pitti won its bet. Figures on the show’s attendance (6 hours after closing) show about 8,000 people in attendance, of which 4,900 are buyers. 30% of buyers came from abroad. Numbers not comparable to the pre-Covid editions of Pitti Uomo, of course, but much higher than forecasts made on the eve of the fair. Many exhibitors left for Florence demoralised, convinced that they would receive very few visitors, but driven by the desire to give a message of reassurance to customers.
In the end, however, they found themselves with an unexpectedly significant collection of contacts. “We could say: few but good. There were fewer visitors than usual, as we expected, but there was a lack of curious people, so we are satisfied”, says Gabriele Peruzzi from Ruffo, a Tuscan brand specialising in leather jackets. Similar feelings came from Simone Forzieri, owner of Post & Co (leather belts). “I expected worse,” he says, “I didn’t think there would be many foreigners, but there were. Trade fairs are very important, especially for products like ours, which are handmade and must be tested by hand. This encourages us to continue investing in trade fair events in which we firmly believe”.
Debuts
There was no shortage of debuts at Fortezza da Basso. For example, that of Alexis Azoulai, a young Moroccan entrepreneur who left his studies in pharmacy and in 2019 launched his SLVS brand of leather outerwear. “For me, Pitti is a showcase to the world. My goal is to make myself known and broaden my sales prospects”.
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