CELEBRITIES in love with his clothes include music divas Jennifer Lopez and Ellie Goulding, actress Sarah Jessica Parker and our house’s VIPs Laura Pausini, Chiara Ferragni and Francesca Micheline, among others. Lorenzo Serafini (pictured left) is the creative soul of the Philosophy brand, which in turn is owned by the Aeffe group, the luxury giant founded by Catholic designer Alberta Ferretti (pictured right) in 1988 and listed on Borsa since 2007. A native of Riccione, Serafini is considered one of the most talented fashion designers of his generation. At the helm of Philosophy since 2014, he immediately won a crowd of enthusiastic fans with his distinctly romantic vision, enriched by never banal vintage touches and, at the same time, modern taste. It is no coincidence that the collection called “Philosophical Resort 2024”, presented in recent weeks, again returns to the concept of romanticism. In particular, Serafini asks himself the question: “What does it mean to be romantic today?” and continuing the path opened by the Spring-Summer 2023 fashion show, responds with a collection built on silhouettes that can dress the body in fresh and effortless elegance. The philosophy’s female DNA adapts to the everyday needs of strong women who see fashion as an important tool for expressing their identity.
Clothing becomes, to use a particularly exaggerated term, a means of self-affirmation: from this point of view, the vest is the must-have of the season, it should be worn like a second skin. Not to be overlooked is the brand’s ongoing commitment to sustainability: a critical duty in the fashion sector, which, according to the United Nations, is capable of generating at least 10% of global CO2 emissions and wasting around 79 trillion liters of water per year. year (but, according to experts, these are underestimations). Not to mention water pollution: the clothing industry is actually responsible for 35% of the microplastics that end up in the seas and oceans, which is equivalent to about 190,000 tons of microplastics per year. The latter come mainly from polyester, used in so-called “fast fashion” or “ready-to-wear”, produced in huge quantities at low cost without regard to environmental impact. Last April, Philosophy by Lorenzo Serafini launched a second “capsule collection” (literally “small limited collection”) dedicated to sustainability called “Philosophy Re-styled by Lorenzo Serafini 002”. This time the collection was created in collaboration with the famous luxury goods retailer LuisaViaRoma.
In the e-commerce available at https:www.luisaviaroma.comit, there is a “capsule” dedicated to the topic of recycling. After clothes designed for cocktails and parties (the protagonists of the first upcycled collection), the second edition of Philosophy ReStyled is dominated by denim, another obsession of the designer from Riccione. The collection was born from the revival of iconic pieces already on the catwalk in the past, and consists of eight limited edition models. “For the second ‘recycled’ Philosophy capsule, I was interested in rethinking some denim pieces, my real passion,” comments the creative director of the brand. I am happy and satisfied with the result and already thinking about the next release.” The clothing included in the capsule is adorned with iconic brand elements such as floral embroidery and rhinestones. The collection includes a jumpsuit, jeans and high-waisted shorts embellished with crystal buckles, which are also used to recreate the “Pls” logo on the back pocket. Embroidered roses adorn shorts and a miniskirt that can be worn with a matching top, while a pair of trousers is covered in a cascade of hot-melt sequins. As with the first capsule, each model features an exclusive label embroidered with the words “Customized by Lorenzo” (literally “Customized by Lorenzo”). In addition to the iconic website for fashion lovers, a small selection of clothing is also available from the mono-brand store in Rome and the brand’s online store (https:www.philosophyofficial.comit_it).
The popularity of the brand on social media (Intagram alone has about 1 million followers) certainly plays into the sales figures, which are up in 2022 (+3.3% year-over-year). According to what was reported by the Aeffe group at the final stage of financial reporting, in March last year the consolidated turnover was 352 million euros, up 8.4% compared to 324.6 million in the previous year. In 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic, revenue was 351.4 million euros. All the company’s brands recorded an improvement in sales: Alberta Ferretti by 25.2%, followed by Pollini (+18%), Moschino (+5.8%) and Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini (+3.3%). In terms of profitability, last year gross operating income was 36 million euros (+0.6% compared to 2021). The company reported an “encouraging result despite the difficulties in the Chinese market due to the local health emergency, which negatively affected both sales volumes and expected margins in the second half of the year, and also contributed to higher costs, both variable and and permanent.