White to celebrate Made in Italy and sustainability in 300-brand salon

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Sep 17, 2020

White, the uniquely located fashion-forward Milanese tradeshow, this month plans to celebrate Made in Italy and support sustainability, while it showcases several exciting new talents in its upcoming 300-brand salon.

Some 200 brands will take space physically at White, which operates in two main spaces locations – Tortona 27 Superstudio Più and Tortona 54 Base Milano; while a further 100 brands will be present on its rapidly growing B2B digital platform.

Its next edition will be held from Thursday, September 24 to Sunday September 27 in the two locations, perfectly situated in the heart of south-central Milan, where the likes of Zegna, Armani, Fendi and Moncler have made their Milanese headquarters.

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This season, White’s Special Guest will be Vièn, the happening culture mashup label, created by Vincenzo Palazzo.  

“In a very challenging year for the fashion system and, above all, for independent brands, being chosen by White as special guest is a great opportunity for visibility with buyers and the press. I want to thank (White Founder) Massimiliano Bizzi for his proposal, which I have accepted with great enthusiasm. Vìen is a project conceived, designed and produced in Apulia by a young team, which crafts classic garments by revisiting them with Made in Italy sartorial care. The collection that I am going to showcase at White during the Fashion Week is the upshot of a very strange and unusual time. During the lockdown, while isolated from the world and from all certainties we used to have, I recalled the past and rediscovered classic and iconic items that I have infused with the colours, the textiles, the scents and the vibrations of my land, which I have inhabited by myself, in isolation, and learned to value by recalling old memories,” explained Palazzo in a release.

While the salon’s Special Project this season will be Sabina Musayev. The Azerbaijan-born, but Israel-based creator who references handicrafts – from carpets to embroidery – to create elegant creations that also channel ancient Greek architecture.

White has also invited in a Special Designer, Yekaterina Ivankova, known for her commitment to sustainable fashion. The Kazakhstan-born designer, who studied at Polimoda in Florence, launched her brand in 2017, using as raw materials vintage garments and stock materials.

Permanently innovating, the trade show has also created a new category, White for Italy; supporting local brands that produce in Italy. This section includes such dynamic marques as Salar, Dieffe Kinloch, Blue of a kind, Edithmarcel, Federico Cina, Michele Chiocciolini, Gilberto Calzolari, Delirious eyewear and The Bespoke Dudes Eyewear, among others. Each of these brands uses found materials, often just scraps of fabric to create unconventional, yet stylish, garments and accessories; fusing elements of local artisans and high technology to think out of the box. Joining a massive new drive within fashion to be in synch with the greater environment in which we all live.

In another fresh approach, White’s founder Massimiliano Bizzi is offering support to Milano Loves Italy, which working alongside the Camera della Moda, pulls together nine Milanese showrooms under one umbrella.

Though the key focus will be on sustainability, notably with WSM Fashion Reboot, curated by the White team and Matteo Ward, co-founder of the brand Ward and artistic director of Give A Focus, White’s sustainable hub, which has been busy developing this asset also in its womenswear editions. The new edition of WSM will include a show and a series of talks and workshops with emphasis on retail, as well as the section Focus on Italy, dedicated to the Italian firms and the businesses that produce in Italy.