Paul Smith will open next Pitti Uomo with latest collection

Paul Smith is expected to make an impact this June as the British designer opens the 106th Pitti Immagine Uomo with the launch of his SS25 collection.

Given Pitti’s reputation for tailoring and Paul Smith’s strong links with that particular category, the company said “it’s with this in mind that Paul Smith announces its return to… an event which has a particular reverence for tailored clothing”. 

The label will show its SS25 mainline collection to buyers and press on 11 June.

Sir Paul Smith said of this: “I am very excited to be opening Pitti Uomo with the debut of my collection. I was one of the first guest designers to be invited to show at Pitti back in 1993 and I think that it’s a wonderful moment that highlights some of the best menswear around in a very real way. I am looking forward to presenting my collection in a more personal setting, the return to Florence feels like just the right thing to do.” 

And Pitti Immagine CEO Raffaello Napoleone described him as “a visionary designer, a creative with endless curiosity, an inexhaustible enthusiast, a gentleman of natural elegance, an ambassador of British creativity, a fashion lover, and a biker. And for us — for me personally and for Pitti Immagine — he is a great friend. The connection between Sir Paul Smith and Pitti has led us to create many memorable events over these 30 years.”

Paul Smith has been more active than ever this year with the Paul Smith Foundation last month saying it’s helping the reviving Smithfield area of London become a new “creative hub for the capital’s next generation of fashion designers” via the Fashion Residency at Studio Smithfield that will provide six “state of the art” studios to the UK capital’s fashion creatives.

In February the label had teamed up again with football club Manchester United for a spring tailoring launch. And in the same month, London’s Covent Garden revealed a new immersive light installation in partnership with Paul Smith whose flagship store is on Floral Street.

However, in January, the label closed all of its stores in Germany as the post-Covid environment made them increasingly unsustainable. But it continues to be active in the country via wholesale.