S|STYLE #8
Event
Edition 106
12.06.2024
Place of the event
Sala delle Nazioni
Date of the event
12.06.2024 12:00
10 talented designers explore the world of circular luxury in collaboration with Kering MIL
At Pitti Immagine Uomo 106 (Fortezza da Basso, Florence, June 11-14, 2024), S|STYLE #8 returns. The Pitti Discovery Foundation exhibition project, which has attracted attention from the press and top buyers since its inception, serves as an important showcase for ten international brands distinguished by their creativity and response to social and environmental change. The brands have been selected worldwide by journalist and curator Giorgia Cantarini.

The partnership launched in 2023 with the Kering Material Innovation Lab (Kering MIL) continues. Established in Milan in 2013, the Kering MIL operates as an internal research facility of the Kering Group, focused on minimizing the environmental footprint of its brands by pioneering the transition towards a sustainable supply chain. With a decade of expertise in the sustainability field, Kering MIL's involvement will focus on a practical approach to accelerate the adoption of innovative, low-impact materials and processes in the S|STYLE designers' collections. Each designer will present a look based on the theme of this edition: circular luxury. This involves using the expertise and know-how of selected producers to create specialized supply chains and networks for the production of high-quality recycled textile materials mixed with virgin fibers aligned with Kering's Sustainability Standards*. The materials range from denim, jersey, canvas, and twill, and include those derived from agricultural waste to pre- and post-consumer textiles, from mechanical to chemical recycling, featuring both open loop and closed loop systems, from cotton to polyester, with the goal of proposing "the best in class" in circular textile solutions.
The participating brands are:
We have reached the eighth edition of S-Style, and if we take a moment to look back, we are proud to have showcased, and hopefully enhanced, through skilled curation, a true generation of international fashion designers. Perhaps the first to be fully aware, in both behavior and action, of what it means to engage in creative and original work with a strong cultural knowledge and a sense of responsibility. The collaboration with Kering Material Innovation Lab has added a fundamental element, as the MIL can concretely assist designers in understanding and using the most innovative materials for high-quality, research-driven design.

— Lapo Cianchi, head of communication and special projects at Pitti Immagine and general secretary of the Pitti Discovery Foundation

In this edition, we have asked 10 emerging brands to dedicate sculptural, genderless, seasonless, over-the-top, and excessive looks to Kering, giving their creativity a chance to reinterpret the concept of circular luxury and the new generation of circular textile solutions. The materials provided to them result from continuous research and development by MIL, which combines the expertise of textile recycling with the heritage of processing virgin fibers, aligned with our Sustainability Standards, and merges the necessary physical-mechanical qualities with aesthetic ones for luxury applications. Our ongoing collaboration with yarn and fabric producers, garnett operators, top makers, and all other selected supply chain operators is key for us because it allows us to co-create new solutions, focusing our efforts on achieving increasingly high-quality results.

— Christian Tubito, Director of MIL

The project brings together a collaborative group of designers, training them to work with innovative materials, with a focus on creativity guided by Kering's Sustainability Standards*. Kering's expertise and the business world at Pitti Uomo team up in a system for the future of fashion. S|STYLE is the most tangible experience that an emerging designer could wish for.

— Giorgia Cantarini, journalist, stylist, and curator of S|STYLE

The new exhibiting setup
For S|STYLE 2024, a completely revamped setup makes the concept of circularity central to the collection presentation thanks to the creative contribution of by Massimiliano Giannelli, founder and owner of the boutique and e-shop Société Anonyme: "Stonehenge, an ancient assembly of stones arranged in a perfectly circular structure, raises questions about the cyclical nature of time and human existence. Circularity, both physical and conceptual, permeates many spheres of life, including fashion. The fashion industry, often associated with consumerism and waste, now embraces a more sustainable approach: materials are recycled, reused, and repaired rather than discarded after use. Sustainability goes beyond the use of organic fabrics and energy savings, promoting the longevity of garments. Like Stonehenge, which has withstood time, it is a lasting imprint beyond seasonality. By adopting circular and sustainable practices, we can hope to preserve not just the planet but the very existence of fashion itself."

Using sustainable materials, IAMMI, a design studio exploring new aesthetics, highlights the importance of this value within the creative and design process. Stephanie Blanchard, the Italian-French art director at IAMMI, chose the Tofu collection to furnish the spaces of S|STYLE in Fortezza. Seats, benches, and small tables reflect the nature of rocks. A soft core for an engaging tactile experience due to the artisanal processing of recycled foam.
 
About the Kering Material Innovation Lab
In 2013, Kering Group established the Material Innovation Lab (MIL), which is dedicated to sourcing materials and fabrics aligned with Kering's Sustainability Standards*. Based in Milan, MIL has curated a continuously updated fabric collection, enabling the design teams of Kering brands to better understand materials that align with Kering's Sustainability Standards*. MIL also serves as an agent of change within a highly complex supply chain. It focuses on cotton, silk, cashmere, viscose, and polyester. This allows the Group's fashion houses and key suppliers access to resources, tools, and new solutions to help them make choices that align with the Group's sustainability strategy in developing their products. Its database uses unique references for suppliers and their fabrics. The fabrics undergo thorough examination and are evaluated against external standards and certifications, as well as an exclusive MIL tool developed per the EP&L methodology.
About S|STYLE
The S|STYLE project, now in its eighth edition, was launched in 2020 amid the pandemic to address a cultural, social, and market need for discussing, discovering, and showcasing a new way of conceptualizing collections and seasonality with respect for the environment and an eye towards the future. The selection of participating brands is based on social and environmental responsibility criteria, core values that define the DNA of each brand while also emphasizing creativity and design. Since its first edition, it has served as a hub that has featured talents such as Connor McKnight, Y/Project with the launch of its "Evergreen" collection, Phipps (which now has a collaboration with Boss), Federico Cina, the winner of "Who's on Next," and Uniforme, a finalist for the "Andam prize." Among the latest recognitions, S.S Daley, the 2022 LVMH Prize winner, presented his first collection at Pitti Uomo in 2021.