Loro Piana’s Nautical-Inspired Staples Are Summer-Ready
Earlier this year, the Italian luxury house Loro Piana hosted a de facto spring break in St. Barts. A bevy of international actresses, editors, and social—media personalities flew in for the occasion. There were balmy dinners and a preview of a new capsule collection, and the weekend was capped off with the 2019 St. Barths Bucket Regatta, in which the company’s deputy chairman, Pier Luigi Loro Piana, raced his superyacht My Song.
A Caribbean island might seem like an unconventional venue to host festivities for Loro Piana. After all, when the company was founded in northern Italy in 1924, it made its mark by supplying wool and cashmere textiles; today, it continues to be known for its ultra-luxe Andean vicuña knits and Mongolian goat baby-cashmere creations. But the brand’s focus on superlative raw materials means it is equally adept at turning out summer-ready staples.
Consider its tote bags, linen-and–cotton canvas accessories whose burnt orange and terra-cotta stripes hark back to the same motif used on Loro Piana sales representatives’ luggage from the 1970s. They were originally envisioned as sailing bags, but the totes’ roomy, open design and water- and stain-repellent finish make them perfect for a beach day.
The brand’s Open Walk and Summer Walk shoes similarly take their cues from nautical excursions: Their white soles, a blend of natural rubber and technical components, keep wooden decks scuff-free, and they even have a spot on the heel where you can write your initials, so reclaiming them is a cinch.
Ease is also at the center of Loro Piana’s linen capsule collection, available in July. Composed of a handful of breezy, warm-weather ready-to-wear pieces for men and women—think espadrilles, airy caftans, and white drawstring pants—the grouping uses Solaire Delave, a linen finished with aloe vera, which helps the textile stay crease-free.
The capsule “combines an Italian notion of effortless elegance with an active move toward light and lightness,” says Loro Piana CEO Fabio d’Angelantonio.
Sounds like summer to us.
You Might Also Like
